The Philippine government is extending financial aid to overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) in Hong Kong who contracted COVID-19, according to presidential spokesperson Karlo Nograles.
Nograles said the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration will provide $200 for every COVID-positive OFW in Hong Kong.
Another $200 will also be given by the Philippine Overseas Labor Office (POLO) in Hong Kong as after care financial assistance to those who recovered from the disease, according to Nograles.
The spokesperson said POLO also provided COVID-hit OFWs with food, hygiene kits, and power banks so they can communicate while waiting for calls from the Center for Health Protection and HK Labor Department.
In addition, POLO is working with a non-government organization so several OFWs can be accommodated to an isolation facility.
"It also coordinated with the HK Labor Department, which set up an isolation facility for our kababayans, pending admission to the quarantine facility, apart from providing transportation arrangements," said Nograles in a statement.
The spokesperson said 28 OFWs in Hong Kong have tested positive for COVID-19 as of February 19. Five have already recovered, including three who are already back with their employers.
Hong Kong is currently seeing a surge of COVID-19 cases driven by the Omicron variant, 6,063 new COVID-19 cases on Saturday, according to a Reuters report.
