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PRESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte approved the temporary ban on flights from the United Kingdom and the entry of foreign travelers from 18 other countries and one territory from Wednesday, December 30, 2020 to January 15, 2021.
The temporary ban was issued in light of the spread of a new variant of Covid-19 in the UK.
Apart from the United Kingdom, President Duterte approved a temporary ban on the entry of foreign travelers from Denmark, Ireland, Japan, Australia, Israel, the Netherlands, Switzerland, France, Germany, Iceland, Italy, Lebanon, Singapore, Sweden, Korea South, South Africa, Canada, Spain and Hong Kong.
Foreign and Filipino passengers already in transit from these locations and arriving in the country before December 30 will not be prohibited from entering the Philippines.
But they will be required to undergo a 14-day absolute quarantine period at the facility and obtain a negative RT-PCR test result, said presidential spokesman Harry Roque.
Roque said that outbound travel to countries with reported new Covid-19 variants will be subject to the Philippines ‘exit protocols and the respective countries’ entry protocols.
COMPENSATION
Laboratories at points of entry are instructed to send specimens from travelers from countries with reported cases of the new Covid-19 variant to the Philippine Genome Center, Research Institute of Tropical Medicine (RITM); and the National Institutes of Health of the University of the Philippines.
The RITM is also aimed at developing a Standard Operating Procedure / Response Protocol for reports of new variants and strains of Covid-19.
President Duterte also directed the Office of Quarantine and the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration to ensure strict adherence to quarantine and testing protocols for returning Filipinos and overseas Filipino workers (OFW) and to provide a list of lines or a summary of information to local government units to ensure that the 14-day quarantine is completed.
The DOH Covid-19 surveillance and rapid action team should also receive a copy of the list of lines for their case profile and trend analysis.
Duterte also tasked the Department of the Interior and Local Government with ensuring that all other incoming international travelers from countries that are not subject to the temporary ban strictly end their 14-day quarantine by following existing quarantine protocols, which allow for home quarantine. after obtaining a negative RT-PCR. test result at point of entry.
MCIA
Mactan-Cebu International Airport (MCIA) is awaiting final guidelines from the National Government on the temporary ban.
“We are still awaiting the guidelines on the travel ban from the Interagency Task Force. We currently have a travel ban for the UK only, ”said GMR Megawide, the MCIA operator in a text message. (JKV / WORK)
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