Authorities in the Philippines have said that migrant workers who feel sick after their return flight from abroad should be brought to hospitals instead of quarantine facilities,
Following the death of an OFW reportedly at a COVID-19 isolation center, COVID-19 treatment “czar” and Health Undersecretary Leopoldo Vega advised that families of unwell OFWs should coordinate with hospitals so they could be transferred from the airport.
“Talaga pong on humanitarian reasons, dapat point-to-point ‘yan. Kailangan makipag-ugnayan sila sa hospital na sunduin agad sa airports at ilalagay sa hospital kung saan sila nakipag-ugnayan,” he said in a press briefing.
RELATED STORY: OFW battling cancer dies in quarantine facility
It has to be point-to-point, lalo na ‘yong mga kasong ganoon nangangailangan ng hospitalization. Pumapayag naman ang BoQ (Bureau of Quarantine) non,” added the official.
This week, a media report said that a cancer-stricken OFW Rachelle Sagonoy died on the same day she was set to go home from her COVID-19 quarantine facility. Her pleas for her transfer to a hospital were rejected due to the lack of available rooms.
The Philippines is battling an increase in coronavirus infections due to the Delta COVID-19 variant. About 75 percent of ICU beds were in use on Aug. 25, while around 68 percent of ward beds were occupied.
As many as 1.89 million COVID-19 cases and 32,000 deaths have also been reported. (AW)
