Negros Oriental scraps RT-PCR requirement for travelers

People traveling to Negros Oriental no longer need to show a negative RT-PCR test result to enter the province, according to an executive order signed by Governor Roel Degamo on Wednesday, March 10.

Only those “who manifest symptoms of influenza-like illnesses” upon assessment of a medical team would be subjected to a test upon arrival. This comes as the rest of the country is seeing a worrying spike in COVID-19 infections.

According to the Provincial Government of Negros Oriental’s Facebook post, the directive is “in compliance” with the national Inter-Agency Task Force on Emerging Infectious Diseases’ (IATF-EID) new guidelines that loosened domestic travel restrictions.

Degamo’s executive order superseded his last one released just eight days prior, which retained the need for negative RT-PCR tests. IATF-EID Resolution No. 101 left local governments with the discretion to still require the tests. 

A day before the directive was released, Degamo told local reporters that the provincial government would shoulder RT-PCR tests for indigent travelers who cannot afford it.

The governor had also asked Dumaguete City Mayor Felipe Remollo to nix the “certificate of acceptance” requirement for travelers entering the city that is on top of the required negative RT-PCR test results.

A “certificate of acceptance” is a document required by some local governments as proof that a traveler had satisfied all requirements for entry and had coordinated with authorities.

“Ang RT-PCR, pwede ra na, to regulate, nga walay makasulod sa city nga COVID. Pero kanang acceptance, dili na siya acceptable anymore kay naa na man tay national IATF [guidelines] nga gi-follow nato nga wala nay LSI,” Degamo said, as quoted by Yes The Best Dumaguete 106.3.

(They can retain the RT-PCR test to regulate, make sure that no one enters the city who is infected with COVID. But the acceptance certificate, that’s not acceptable anymore since there are national IATF guidelines wherein there is no more classification of LSI [locally stranded individuals].)

While Degamo’s latest executive order is “binding in all component cities and municipalities” in the province including Dumaguete, it also stated that “travelers are required to coordinate with the LGUs of their final destination,” pending the institutionalization of the Department of Science and Technology’s S-PaSS app for travelers.

Negros Oriental joins Cebu province, Mandaue City, and Lapu-Lapu City in waiving the RT-PCR requirement in Region 7, a hotspot for COVID-19 infections. Bohol, Siquijor, and Cebu City still require a negative test for incoming travelers.

As of Wednesday, Negros Oriental has 96 active cases, according Dr. Lilland Estacion, incident commander of the Negros Oriental Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID).

Estacion also reported in a press briefing that 670 health workers in the province had already been vaccinated. – Rappler.com