WITH COVID-19 becoming less of a priority to the Baguio government, the city has begun the further scaling down of its COVID-19 triage, isolation, and testing operations.
Earlier this week on Monday, the Baguio City Central Triage facility was cut back from its 24-hour operation to nine hours or from 8:00 A.M. to 5:00 P.M. for triaging and from 8:00 A.M. to 4:00 P.M. for antigen testing.
According to City Health Officer Dr. Rowena Galpo, the city is also planning on closing its isolation facility in the former Sto. Niño Hospital temporarily if the patients due to be admitted are less than 10 in number and will instead house patients at the central triage facility or have them under home isolation and quarantine guidelines.
Galpo also added that the city is planning on cutting back on its aggressive COVID-19 testing pursuant to Department of Health (DOH) guidelines, with testing to be conducted only on symptomatic health workers, senior citizens, and individuals with comorbidities.
Patients in the city have instead been kept in home isolation where possible.
According to Baguio Mayor Benjamin Magalong, the city will instead prioritize vaccinations against COVID-19 to protect against the disease.
