COVID-19 Special Coverage, Issues and Special Coverage, News

Metro Manila to stay in Alert Level 4 as the third quarter of the year ends

Posted by HiLitesASHS on

By Ana Rufa Padua

The pilot implementation of the COVID-19 Alert Level System in the National Capital Region (NCR) that was scheduled to end on September 30 will be extended until October 15, 2021 as per the decision of the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases. 

As Metro Manila remains on Alert Level 4, a few adjustments regarding the guidelines will be made: 

  • Fitness studios and gyms will be allowed at 20% capacity given that all gym workers are fully vaccinated
  • Indoor dine-in services, in-person religious services, and personal care services will have 20% total allowable capacity and an additional 10% if they have a government safety seal
  • Outdoor settings of the same services will have an allowable capacity of 30% or  40% with a government safety seal.

The quarantine protocols for the rest of the country is as follows:

MECQ(Oct. 1 to 15)GCQ w/ heightened restrictions(Oct. 1 to 31)GCQ(Oct. 1 to 31)
Apayao, Kalinga, Batanes, Bataan, Bulacan, Cavite, Lucena City, Rizal, Laguna, Naga City, Iloilo ProvinceAbra, Baguio City, Ilocos Sur, Pangasinan, Cagayan, Isabela, City of Santiago, Nueva Vizcaya, Quirino, Quezon, Batangas, Bacolod City, Capiz,Iloilo City, Lapu-Lapu City, Negros Oriental, Bohol, Zamboanga del Norte, Zamboanga del Sur, Cagayan de Oro City, Misamis Oriental, Davao del Norte, Davao Occidental, Butuan City, Surigao del Sur
Davao de Oro (until October 15 only)		Ilocos Norte, Dagupan City, Benguet , Ifugao Tarlac, Marinduque, Occidental Mindoro, Oriental Mindoro, Puerto Princesa, Albay, Camarines Norte,Aklan, Antique, Guimaras, Negros Occidental, Cebu City, Cebu province, Mandaue City, Siquijor, Tacloban City, Zamboanga Sibugay, Zamboanga City, Misamis Occidental, Iligan City, Davao City, Davao Oriental, Davao del Sur, General Santos City, Sultan Kudarat, Sarangani, North Cotabato, South Cotabato, Agusan del Norte, Agusan del Sur, Dinagat Islands, Surigao del Norte, Cotabato City, Lanao del Sur

Modified GCQ will be implemented for the rest of the country.

The Department of Health (DOH) concluded the third quarter of the year with the nationwide tally of  2,549,966 COVID-19 cases—139,294 of which are active cases.

Meanwhile, the pilot run of vaccinations for minors aged 12 to 17 with comorbidities or underlying medical conditions will start on October 15 and could start in Metro Manila, according to DOH on September 29. Adolescents part of this group will be classified under the A3 category.

Guidelines for the said vaccination is yet to be finalized, but the following requirements should be expected:

  • Informed consent of the parents and approval of the child/children
  • Medical certificate from doctors regarding the comorbidity of the adolescent
  • If from Geographically Isolated and Disadvantaged Areas (GIDAS), clearance from on-site trained physicians guided by a checklist from the Pediatric Infectious Disease Society of the Philippines

Vaccines approved to be inoculated for minors are Pfizer and Moderna.

Currently, a total of 24,044,260 people have been fully vaccinated, making up 22.2% of the Philippine population. 

For detailed updates and information, you may visit https://doh.gov.ph/2019-nCoV and  https://www.who.int/.

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