2022 marks the third year of the health crisis caused by the 2019 Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19).
With the world, including the Philippines, steadily adapting to the current situation, various policies have been amended while some protocols remain the same.
New threats also rose and caused governments to remain on alert.
CURRENT COVID SITUATION IN THE PHILIPPINES
As of December 23, the World Health Organization (WHO) recorded a total of 4,059,369 confirmed COVID-19 cases in the Philippines. Out of this number, 65,172 individuals have perished.
Meanwhile, as of December 18, DOH reported that a total of 73,737,536 individuals have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19.
At least 21,097,054 individuals have already received an extra dose or a booster shot of the vaccine.
OPTIONAL WEARING OF FACE MASKS
On October 28, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. signed Executive Order No. 7. The order marked the biggest shift in the policies implemented by the government in the fight against COVID-19 since it no longer mandates the wearing of face masks in indoor and outdoor areas.
The order states that the wearing of face masks shall be voluntary except in healthcare facilities, medical transport, and public transportation by land, air, or sea.
The government also encourages senior citizens, individuals with comorbidities, immunocompromised individuals, pregnant women, unvaccinated individuals, and symptomatic individuals to continue using a face mask.
"A policy of voluntary wearing of face masks in both indoor and outdoor settings is a positive step towards normalization, and a welcome development that would encourage activities and boost efforts toward the full reopening of the economy," President Marcos said.
The Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID) recommended the voluntary wearing of face masks through Resolution No. 3.
The signing of Executive Order No. 7 came more than a month after President Marcos signed Executive Order No. 3 which allows the voluntary wearing of face masks in outdoor spaces.
STATE OF CALAMITY EXTENSION
President Marcos also signed Proclamation No. 57 which extends the nationwide state of calamity until December 31, 2022, due to COVID-19.
On March 16, 2020, former President Rodrigo Duterte signed Proclamation No. 929 which placed the whole country in a state of calamity for a period of six months. The latter, likewise, signed Proclamation No. 1021 and Proclamation No. 1218 which extended the implementation of the state of calamity until September 12, 2022.
The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) recommended the extension of the state of calamity in order for the national government and local government units 'to continuously deliver Covid-19 related interventions, such as but not limited to Covid-19 vaccination program; utilize appropriate funds, including the Quick Response Fund, in their disaster preparedness and response efforts to contain the spread of Covid-19; monitor and control prices of basic necessities and prime commodities; and provide basic services to the affected populations'.
The Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) welcomed the decision of President Marcos to extend the state of calamity.
“With this extension, we commit to continue to shepherd our local government units to sustain their efforts in mitigating and preventing the spread of Covid-19 in their respective localities and to ensure the safety and protection of their constituents against the virus," DILG Sec. Benjamin Abalos said in a statement.
NEW COVID-19 VARIANTS
New variants of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, also emerged in 2022. Some of these variants also breached the borders of the Philippines.
These new variants include the BA. 4 strain to which the Philippines recorded its first case from a Filipino that arrived from the Middle East on May 4. The DOH assured that the patient has no symptoms of COVID-19.
The DOH warned that the Omicron BA.4 variant could spread faster due to its 'ability to evade immune protection induced by prior infection and/or vaccination, particularly if this has waned over time.'
Aside from the BA.4 variant, the DOH also confirmed the entry of the Omicron XBB subvariant.
On October 18, the agency reported that the Philippines recorded 81 cases of the said strain in Western Visayas and the Davao Region. DOH also recorded 193 cases of the XBC variant.
The World Health Organization has classified the BA.4 strain as a 'variant of concern', and the Omicron XBB subvariant as a variant under monitoring.
MONKEYPOX
Aside from COVID-19, the Philippines also reels from the threat of mpox, formerly known as monkeypox.
In July, the WHO classified the disease as a global emergency. The health body declared a mpox outbreak after countries, where mpox is not endemic, declared cases.
The Philippines reported the first case of mpox in the country in July 29. DOH identified the first case as a 31-year-old Filipino who arrived in the Philippines on July 19. The patient has been tagged as recovered and discharged from isolation on August 6.
As of writing, the DOH has recorded three more cases of mpox, which brought the total number of cases to four.
DOH officer-in-charge Maria Rosario Vergeire previously said that the Philippines studies whether the country can receive a supply of mpox vaccine, produced by the United States, either through procurement or donation.
Meanwhile, outside of the Philippines, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) confirmed that a Filipino national in Singapore tested positive for mpox. The Ministry of Health in Singapore identified the case as a 31-year-old male who tested positive for the disease on July 25.
Reports stated that the patient developed a fever on July 21 and developed rashes, which spread to other parts of his body.
DOH has also confirmed that a traveler from the Philippines tested positive for mpox in Hong Kong. Vergeire assured that the traveler is not Filipino but has previously traveled to the United States and Canada.
WHO said that mpox can be transmitted through contact with bodily fluids, skin lesions, or internal mucosal surfaces, such as in the mouth or throat, respiratory droplets, and contaminated objects.
HEALTH SECRETARY
Amidst the ongoing health crisis, President Marcos has yet to name his first DOH Secretary.
Currently, Usec. Vergeire leads the agency as an officer-in-charge. Vergeire has been the face of the DOH during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Speaking to reporters at the Manila Hotel on October 20, President Marcos said that he will appoint a DOH secretary once the country lifts the state of a public health emergency and state of calamity.
“We have to get away from the emergency stance of the DOH because we have to open up businesses. We have to make the Philippines more hospitable to travelers, both business and tourists, and it does not help if we are still under a state of calamity,” the President said.
