DOH might seek extension of state of calamity to keep COVID response going
MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Health said Tuesday it will recommend the extension of the COVID-19 state of calamity if a bill allowing government to implement pandemic protocols is not signed into law by next month.
The Philippines remains a nationwide state of calamity due to the COVID-19 pandemic after President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. extended the declaration until December 31. The extension allowed the government to continue implementing measures against COVID-19 and access pandemic response funds.
Health officer-in-charge Maria Rosario Vergeire said it will ask the Office of the President to extend the declaration of the state of calamity or to allow local governments to proclaim state of calamity in their localities should Congress not act on the Public Health Emergency for Emerging and Reemerging Disease Bill.
Vergeire, however, stressed that giving local governments authority to make their own state of calamity declarations is not going to address the issue.
"Under the bill, even though there is no state of calamity declaration or public health emergency declaration, we can still continue to implement our vaccination program. We can still do expedited procurement, we can still do the other things we are doing right now for this pandemic," she said.
The health official added there is a recommendation to merge the bill on public health emergency with the proposed measure to create a Philippine Center for Disease Prevention and Control (CDC).
The Philippines has over 4 million COVID-19 cases, with more than 64,000 deaths, since the start of the pandemic. — Gaea Katreena Cabico
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