New community quarantine (CQ) classifications for the month of September were released today, September 6, 2021, following the announcement of Presidential Spokesperson Secretary Harry Roque Jr. in a press briefing in Malacañang.
Under the new CQ classifications, the National Capital Region (NCR) will now be under General Community Quarantine (GCQ) starting September 8 to September 30, and will be under the pilot implementation of a new classification framework that would focus on the imposition of granular lockdown measures.
“Magkakaroon po ng pilot dito po sa Metro Manila at eto po yung tinatawag nga natin na mga localized lockdowns. Maglalabas po ang inyong IATF ng guidelines for pilot areas,” said Secretary Roque, who is concurrent Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) spokesperson.
Under the new CQ classifications covering the period of September 8 to 30, 2021, the following areas will be under Modified Enhanced Community Quarantine: Apayao, Bataan, Bulacan, Cavite, Lucena City, Rizal, Laguna, Iloilo Province, Iloilo City, and Cagayan De Oro City.
Areas that are under GCQ with heightened restrictions are Ilocos Sur, Ilocos Norte, Pangasinan, Cagayan, Quezon, Batangas, Naga City, Antique, Bacolod City, Capiz, Cebu Province, Lapu-Lapu City, Negros Oriental, Zamboanga Del Sur, Misamis Oriental, Davao City, Davao Del Norte, Davao De Oro, Davao Occidental, and Butuan City.
Aside from the NCR, the following will be under GCQ: Baguio City, Kalinga, Abra, Benguet, Dagupan City, City of Santiago, Quirino, Isabela, Nueva Vizcaya, Tarlac, Occidental Mindoro, Puerto Princesa, Aklan, Guimaras, Negros Occidental, Cebu City, and Mandaue City for Luzon and Visayas.
While for Mindanao, areas under GCQ are Zamboanga Sibugay, Zamboanga City, Zamboanga Del Norte, Misamis Occidental, Iligan City, Davao Oriental, Davao Del Sur, General Santos City, Sultan Kudarat, Saranggani, North Cotabato, South Cotabato, Agusan Del Norte, Agusan Del Sur, Dinagat Islands, Surigao Del Norte, Surigao Del Sur, Cotabato City, and Lanao Del Sur.
The rest of the Philippines will be under Modified General Community Quarantine.
In the same press briefing, Department of Health (DOH) Undersecretary Charade Grande affirmed the purchase of the DOH of complete sets of personal protective equipment (PPE) consisting of nine components namely, coverall suit, gloves, N95 mask, head cover, shoe cover, surgical mask, surgical gown, apron, and face shield. Grande added that the whole set costs P1,950 and confirmed that less the 12 percent tax, the price went down to around P1,700.
Grande stressed that the quality or technical specifications of the PPEs that were purchased by the DOH for the COVID-19 response is in accordance with World Health Organization standards.
The DOH official also mentioned that the DOH has not received a single complaint on the quality of the procured PPEs that were used by healthcare workers, particularly with regard to its functionality and performance specifications. Usec Grande also pointed out that there is no need to ask for a warranty on the PPEs since the items need to be disposed of right after use.
Meanwhile, Atty Jasonmer Uayan, officer-in-charge of the Procurement Service of the Department of Budget and Management (PS-DBM) explained the legal basis on why the procurement of the PPEs was handled by the PS-DBM, which include the mandate of the agency to procure commonly used supplies and equipment for national government and its instrumentalities. ### OPS
