Mass testing will flatten outbreak for work resumption

April 1, 2020

Each day of the Luzon-wide Enhanced Community Quarantine is becoming more difficult for countless Filipino consumers whose daily livelihood have been abruptly suspended by the lockdown. As we await the government’s social amelioration measures under the Bayanihan to Heal as One Act to be delivered on the ground, we greatly appreciate the ongoing assistance from the local governments and private sector groups to lighten the economic shock of this crisis.

As of March 30, 2020, the Department of Health announced that there were 15,337 tests conducted in different laboratories which are spread in strategic locations nationwide. However, there are still a staggering 89,969 samples pending and waiting to be processed by these laboratories. We are aware that these laboratories, together with their dedicated personnel, are now overwhelmed due to the volume of samples that they need to process.

Recently, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the use of several rapid test kits that would aid in the immediate detection of the infection. These kits can be used alongside with the standard (RT-PCR) test, which are currently being conducted by capable but still limited number of laboratories.

With this, we strongly support calls from medical experts to implement an aggressive mass testing which has been proven successful in isolating and stopping the spread of the virus.
Let us replicate the good experiences of other countries. South Korea, as an example, has tested over 200,000 people with a capacity of 20,000 per day. Even the Executive Director of the World Health Organization, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, has called on other countries around the world to apply the lessons learned in this country.

Among other Asian countries, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Singapore have rapidly expanded their testing capacities concurrent with travel restrictions, heightened hygiene and social distancing.

Aggressive testing will identify those who should be treated, and those asymptomatic or silent carriers that must be isolated. Ready access to free testing should be made available to the vulnerable communities while private enterprises are able to afford to have their employees tested.

The results of mass testing will give valuable guidance to our policy makers on how we can sustainably move forward from the current economic doldrums. People need to get back to their jobs, hopefully sooner than later.

This is an urgent call to all sectors, both government and private, to continuously unite in order to manage and finally suppress the coronavirus disease (COVID-19).