Philippines

Healthcare staff are becoming more vulnerable to coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in Metro Manila hospitals, with stocks of personal protective equipment (PPE) running out as the number of suspected and confirmed cases continues to increase. Dr. Rontgene Solante, Chief Executive Officer of the Philippine College of Physicians (PCP), expressed concern on Saturday that the current supply of protective equipment for …

PBA stars pulled out their singing talents to cheer up Filipinos in the country’s fear of the 2019 coronavirus disease (COVID-19). The players sang Michael Jackson’s “Heal the World,” taking the cue from the Hollywood cover of John Lennon’s “Imagine” shared by Gal Gadot. Tenorio sang Paul Lee, Marc Pingris, Scottie Thompson, Jimmy Alapag, Gabe Norwood, Jayson Castro, Japeth Aguilar, …

Golden Arches Development Corp. (McDonald’s Philippines) said Friday that it has reserved half-a-billion pesos for its workers and the local community where its stores are located. In a statement, George Yang-led McDonald’s Philippines announced the creation of a P500 million peso response fund to allow the company to provide assistance to its employees and communities. According to McDonald’s master-franchise manager, …

President Rodrigo Duterte has warned local chief executives that the instructions for the month-long enhanced community quarantine over Luzon would go beyond. Duterte told local government units (LGUs) in a taped speech aired early Friday that it is the national government that will “call the shots” and it is the duty of the LGUs to comply in the midst of …

Given the scarcity of alcohol and hand sanitizers due to the coronavirus outbreak, the Philippine Polytechnic University (PUP) has developed its version of ethyl alcohol that can help fight the spread of the virus. Dr. Armin S. Coronado, director of the University Institute for Science and Technology Research, said that a pilot alcohol batch was developed on March 11, following …

Veteran actress Coney Reyes couldn’t help but be a proud mother to her son, mayor of Pasig City Vico Sotto, who is leading the battle against coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in his area. The veteran actress proudly revealed in an Instagram post on Friday a video of Sotto leading his squad in social distance action. Sotto jokingly sprayed alcohol at the …

The Manila Electric Corporation (Meralco) would waive its customers ‘ March bill in full instead of only extending the bill’s deadline, Neri Colmenares, chairman of Bayan Muna said on Thursday. Colmenares clarified that Meralco would waive the March bill by reimbursing customers through the supposed overrecovery of annual distribution fees of P29.6 billion, which resulted from estimated lower energy revenues …

The country’s agricultural chief has told retailers and customers that public markets will continue to function in Metro Manila given the increased neighborhood quarantine being enforced throughout Luzon. In a television interview, Agriculture Secretary William Dar said public markets were part of the “key” institutions that President Duterte had exempted from the lockdown, which also included banks, supermarkets and pharmacies. …

On Thursday the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) urged the public to disinfect their households with the correct proportion of bleaching agents as a precautionary measure to combat COVID-19 spread. Environment chief Roy Cimatu said in a statement that a combination of 10 to 15 per cent of bleaching agents or hypochlorite sodium and clean water should be …

The number of people who tested positive for the country’s 2019 coronavirus disease (COVID-19) has reached 217, with 15 new cases reported as of Thursday afternoon. It was also announced that one confirmed case had recovered from the disease bringing the total number of patients recovered to eight, the Department of Health (DOH) said. The recovered patient (PH20) is a …