The recommendation of Health Secretary Teodoro “Ted” Herbosa to lift the country’s state of public health emergency, as the number of COVID-19 cases and fatalities remains low, has the support of Negros Occidental Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson.
“I think we’re ready for that already,” Lacson said, adding “we have learned to adjust on many times that COVID-19 mutated.”
Herbosa likened COVID-19 to influenza, cough and colds, among other diseases that DOH is monitoring.
The World Health Organization announced last May that the public health emergency of international concern is no longer in effect. “Unlike before when numbers are very high, it is now manageable,” Lacson said.
Despite the decrease in reported COVID-19 patients, the governor still urged Negrenses to remain vigilant against the virus.
As of June 25, Negros Occidental logged 121 active COVID-19 cases, with 24 recoveries.
Lacson also confirmed that the Provincial Health Office received a supply of Pfizer bivalent vaccines, but due to limited supply, medical frontliners will be given priority in the vaccination.
Bivalent is recommended by the WHO for third booster shots, to combat new COVID strains.
Lacson also declared that the provincial government has contained the spread of hog deaths due to various diseases in Negros Occidental.
As of June 27, he reported that local government units affected by hog deaths remained at 17 of the 31 municipalities and cities in the province.
Lacson pointed out that there are days when there are no recorded hog deaths.
He cited the cooperation of the LGUs in the province in efforts to lower daily hog deaths from 400 hog deaths daily to currently just more than 100 hog mortalities.
(Gilbert Bayoran via The Visayan Daily Star (TVDS), photo courtesy of TVDS)