Palace seeks compromise on face mask policy between DOH, DOT
Malacaang announced on Wednesday that the Philippines is “seriously” exploring proposals to ease the country’s restriction for wearing a face mask after statistics show that doing so increased tourism.
The Departments of Health (DOH) and Tourism (DOT), according to Press Secretary Trixie Cruz-Angeles, need to agree on easing the mask requirement.
Cruz-Angeles stated that several regions of the world that have relaxed their face mask regulations have witnessed a noticeable rise in visitor visits, citing statistics from the DOT.
“Nagprisinta ang DOT na in certain states na nagluwag na tungkol sa face mask, tumataas ang tourism nila (The DOT gave a presentation showing that tourism numbers improved in certain states that have relaxed their face mask policy),” she said.
“Gawa nga ng front and center ang ating turismo sa pagbangon ng ekonomiya (Because tourism is front and center in efforts to revive the economy), this matter is being taken seriously,” she added.
Prior to the pandemic, tourism made for PHP2.48 trillion, or at least 12.8% of the country’s GDP (gross domestic product), of 2019.
Following short halts in flights and tourism operations in 2020, tourism’s contribution to GDP decreased to 5.2 percent in 2021.
However, Cruz-Angeles said the DOH would still have a “major say” on the fate of the mandatory face mask policy.
“Kailangan magkatugma ‘yung ating DOH at ang ating DOT and other agencies bago tayo mag-revise ng ating mask policy (The DOH and DOT need to reach a compromise before we revise our mask policy),” she added.
Face masks are no longer required to be worn in open areas and most venues, according an executive order (EO) issued by Cebu City last week.
Maria Rosario Vergeire, the DOH official in charge, requested that face masks be used since they offer between 70 and 80 percent protection against Covid-19 and other infectious illnesses, according to scientific research.
The removal of face masks was also rejected by infectious disease specialist Dr. Rontgene Solante due to the presence of the extremely contagious Omicron variant.
