Returning Overseas Filipinos including repatriated Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) will no longer be required to undergo 14-day quarantine in Cebu if they test negative for COVID-19.
The Executive Order (EO) No. 17 issued by Cebu Governor Gwendolyn Garcia took effect on March 31.
Under the new protocol, returning Filipinos will only be required to fill up an online passenger registration form at the Mactan-Cebu International Airport (MCIA) website.
Upon arrival at the airport, they will undergo a reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) test conducted free by the Department of Health.
Travelers must also pre-book a hotel room accredited with the Department of Tourism (DOT), where they wait for the test result.
Hotels that host transient Filipinos will be allowed to accept other bookings based on Department of Health (DOH) guidelines.
“Upon release of a negative RT-PCR test result, they shall be allowed to go home. No other requirement shall be imposed by their Local Government Unit of destination under the Cebu Province in this regard,” read the EO.
“Should the RT- PCR test result turns out positive, health protocols for the treatment of COVID-19 positive individuals shall be followed,” it added.
Garcia said shelving the mandatory quarantine will spare the OFWs and non-returning OFWs from financial costs.
“Requirement of quarantining an OFW and a returning non-OFW and swabbing them only on the 5th day after their arrival puts a heavy financial burden on the returning non-OFW and bludgeons the finance of OWWA that may very well be used other purposes,” Garcia said.
“If you go home, you must have a reason. And more often than not, (it’s an) emergency. They have limited time to spend with their family. If we require them to undergo quarantine, how many days will be left for their families?” she asked.
Garcia said the new policy was issued after meeting with officials from the Overseas Welfare Workers Administration (OWWA), Mactan Cebu International Airport (MCIA), airline companies and representatives from the tourism industry.
