Gov’t to use public schools as isolation facilities until Dec. – Palace

August 11, 2020

The government will use public schools as isolation facilities for coronavirus positive cases until December while there are no face-to-face classes yet, Malacañang said on Tuesday.

In a virtual press briefing, Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque said Education Secretary Leonor Briones has approved the use of public schools as the government intensified its contact tracing activities.

He said the target individuals of each contact tracer is a minimum of 10.

'If we have 6,000 new cases, that means 60,000, we will also use the public schools. And Secretary Leonor Briones agreed to use the public schools until December 31 of this year while there are no face-to-face (classes) of our students," Roque said.

He said the public schools will be used as isolation facilities at the level of the barangays as it is important to isolate those COVID-19 infected who don't have their own room and toilet.

The DepEd, which will open classes on August 24, will use blended learning, without holding face-to-face classes.

The use of public schools as quarantine facilities is on top of the isolation facilities being constructed by Public Works and Highways Secretary Mark Villar, the isolation czar.

Villar, in the same press briefing, said they expect that by the end of this month, they will complete about 300 facilities with a total 12,000 bed capacity.

He thanked the private sector for helping the government in putting up the quarantine facilities.

Villar noted that by August 17, there will be 210 additional ICU beds in East Avenue hospital. There will also be additional ICU beds in Quirino Hospital and Quezon Institute.

President Rodrigo Duterte has said policemen will be tapped in contact tracing. Celerina Monte/DMS