MANILA, Philippines – Manila City’s own testing lab solely for the novel coronavirus began operations on Thursday, June 25, after receiving its license to operate on the same day from the Department of Health.

The testing lab has the capacity to test around 200 cases a day and is located at the Sta Ana Hospital of Manila. The hospital has been the capital’s dedicated facility for COVID-19 patients with its Manila Infectious Disease Control Center.

Why does this matter? The testing center more than doubles the testing capacity of Manila City, which, before the center’s opening, was capable of testing only around 150 tests per day through the local government’s partnership with different hospitals. This puts the testing capacity of Manila City at around 350 tests a day.

Medical experts have emphasized from the beginning of the coronavirus outbreak that testing is crucial in facing the crisis as it shows governments how the coronavirus spreads, which will inform their policy decisions like when to impose lockdowns and prepare for mass social relief efforts.

How is Manila now? As of June 22, Manila City recorded a total of 1,270 active cases of the virus. It also counted 701 suspected and 14 probable cases.

As of Wednesday, June 24, there were 32,295 confirmed coronavirus cases in the Philippines, including 8,656 recoveries and 1,204 deaths. – Rappler.com