MANILA – Filipinos with coughs, colds and fever need not worry about being infected by coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) especially if they do not have travel history to affected countries, a health official said Monday.
"Wala pa tayong local transmission dito sa bansa, so, hindi natin kailangang mangamba o mabahala kung sakaling makaramdam tayo ng mga ganitong (We don't have local transmission in our country, so we don't have to be anxious or worried if we have these) symptoms," Health Assistant Secretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said in a press briefing at the Department of Health (DOH) main office.
Vergeire explained that the DOH uses a decision tool in classifying people with Covid-19 symptoms or had travel history to countries under travel ban or restrictions.
"Ikaw lang ay maka-classify na person under investigation kung ikaw ay may travel history sa mga bansang nilagyan natin ng travel restrictions at mayroon kang symptoms. Ngayon, kung ikaw naman ay may history of travel at wala ka namang mga symptoms, ikaw ay (You will only be classified as person under investigation if you have travel history under travel restrictions and you have the symptoms. If you have travel history [to affected areas] and you don't have symptoms, you are) categorized as person under monitoring," she said.
In connection to this, Vergeire cited that the 26 South Koreans who arrived in the country on February 26 are persons under monitoring.
Vergeire also clarified that contact tracing is only done in the event of positive cases.
"Dito sa Cebu, sa mga Koreans na nagpunta doon, wala naman nag-exhibit ng kahit anong (In Cebu, among the Koreans who went there, no one exhibited any) symptoms, and 15 of them, flew back to South Korea yesterday, two are going back to Korea today," she said.
She added that the South Korean who went to Angeles City has been traced and endorsed to the DOH Region 3 for monitoring.
"'Yung pito naman, andun sila sa iba't ibang hotels sa (The other seven, they're in different hotels in) Cebu and they signified their intent to stay longer after their quarantine period," she said.
The 26 Koreans arrived from Daegu City, South Korea on Tuesday, a few hours before the DOH imposed travel restrictions on the North Gyeongsang province of South Korea.
The DOH Region 7 in Cebu placed them under quarantine. (PNA)
