The Department of Health (DOH), along with the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), has expressed concern that the rise in coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) cases and the destruction left by Typhoon Odette in the Visayas and Mindanao, would affect pregnant women, especially those with high-risk pregnancies, and victims of domestic violence. In a news release Wednesday, the DOH said reports of women in labor being turned away from hospitals due to overcapacity have appeared in the media. It said as hospital capacity increases due to Covid-19 patients and the possible closures in addition to community quarantines commence, more women in

Kalinga, Ifugao, Mountain Province, and Northern Samar will be under the stricter Covid-19 Alert Level 4 starting January 21, Malacañang announced Thursday. “The Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) approved on Thursday, January 20, 2022, the escalation of Kalinga, Ifugao, and Mountain Province in the Cordillera Administrative Region, as well as the province of Northern Samar, to Alert Level 4,” it said in a statement. An escalation to Alert Level 4 means that an area has reached more than 70 percent in healthcare utilization rate, and alarmingly high two-week growth and average daily attack rates (ADAR). Meanwhile, some 14 provinces and a

Iloilo Governor Arthur Defensor Jr. on Thursday said hospitals should be dedicated to severe patients of coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid) to avoid overwhelming the province’s health care system. In his regular press conference on Thursday, the governor said that the province has been expecting a surge in cases since last year and it is currently happening. “We are at it. This is the surge that we have been adjusting since December,” he said. However, with the manifestation of the cases, which is increasing fast, then the province needs to adjust, strategize and rationalize the use of hospitals. “It would be

The accredited pharmacy for the “Resbakuna sa Botika” program in Marikina City is expected to serve a maximum of 200 recipients daily, Mayor Marcy Teodoro said on Thursday. During the program’s launch at the Southstar Drug branch in Barangay Concepcion Uno, Teodoro said the program will help achieve the city’s target of administering 10,000 booster doses daily. “In addition to this, inaasahan natin ang ginagawa dito sa Southstar Drugstore na Resbakuna ay magiging halimbawa o panimula para sa iba pang pharmacy o drugstore sa Marikina (We hope what is being done here at Southstar Drugstore Resbakuna will be an example

Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Secretary Ramon Lopez believes that vaccines will not only save lives during the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic but also jobs for Filipinos. During the launch of “Resbakuna sa Botika” at Southstar Drug in Marikina City Thursday, Lopez highlighted the critical role of vaccines in helping the economy to remain open despite the surge in Covid-19 cases due to the Omicron variant. “We now see in Omicron, cases increased to 35,000 but only below 2,000 are severe and critical. During Delta (surge), that immediately rose to 3,000 to 4,000 cases, but now it is

The City of Bago in Negros Occidental, just south of this provincial capital, has suspended work in offices under the local government unit for four days starting Thursday for disinfection of the City Hall and its annex buildings. Mayor Nicholas Yulo issued Executive Order (EO) 6 providing for alternative work arrangements of all employees during the period, except for offices rendering essential services. “There (are) significant symptoms of Covid-19 afflictions among the government employees of the City of Bago thus, to ensure that public service delivery is not prejudiced, there is a necessity of putting an alternative work-from-home arrangement,” Yulo