BY GILBERT P. BAYORAN
Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson said he anticipates a big problem if the Delta variant of the coronavirus disease 2019 infiltrates Negros Occidental.
“If ever it will happen, we will not be ready,” Lacson said. “We just really hope that we can prevent it by calling on Negrenses to follow the minimum health protocols, avoid gatherings and leisure travel.”
The Delta variant, a highly contagious SARS-CoV-2 virus strain that was first identified in India, has already been detected in various parts of the Philippines, including Antique and Iloilo.
The provincial government requires all inbound travelers, including those from Panay, to present negative RT-PCR results upon entry to Negros Occidental until Aug. 31.
The Covid-19 variants detected in Negros Occidental earlier were of Alpha and Beta mutations, the Department of Health Western Visayas said.
It added that Alpha and Beta are also more contagious than the original SARS-CoV-2, although less transmissible compared to the Delta variant.
President Rodrigo Duterte earlier warned Filipinos, who refused to get vaccinated against Covid-19, that they will not be allowed to leave their homes as a safeguard against the more contagious Delta variant.
Duterte said in televised remarks that there is no law mandating such restriction but added that he is ready to face lawsuits to keep people, who are “throwing viruses left and right”, off the streets.
“We have to be as careful as before, as the treatment remains the same, whether for Delta or Alpha variants,” Provincial Administrator Rayfrando Diaz also said yesterday.
As to the inventory of oxygen supplies that are now lacking in other areas of the country, Lacson said the oxygen plant is still working at the Teresita Lopez Jalandoni Provincial Hospital in Silay City.
Diaz said the TLJPH oxygen plant produces 1,540 oxygen tanks every month to cater to the needs of provincial-managed hospitals.*
