RESOLUTION NO. 96 Series of 2021 January 26, 2021 WHEREAS, Section 15 Article II of the 1987 Constitution states that the State shall protect and promote the right to health of the people and instill health consciousness among them; WHEREAS, Section 2(b) of Executive Order No. 168 mandates the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases to prevent and/or minimize the entry of suspected or confirmed patients with emerging infectious diseases into the country; WHEREAS, on September 16, 2020, the President issued Proclamation No. 1021 (s.2020) extending the period of the State of Calamity throughout the Philippines until September 21, 2021; WHEREAS, the Department of Health received reports regarding a new variant of the SARS-CoV-2 (B.1.1.7 or VUI 2020/12/01) spreading in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (United Kingdom) and another variant identified in South Africa (501.V2); WHEREAS, Memorandums of the Executive Secretary provided for additional measures to be observed relative to the SARS-COV-2 Variant detected in the United Kingdom including the imposition of travel restrictions on countries/jurisdictions where the new COVID-19 variants were officially reported, and subjected Filipino citizens coming from the same countries/jurisdictions to an absolute 14-day quarantine period notwithstanding a negative Reverse-Transcription Polymerase Chain Reaction (RT-PCR) test result; WHEREAS, the continued implementation of proactive measures is necessary to ensure the utmost protection of the health of the Filipino people. WHEREAS, as of January 25, 2021, there are a total of Twenty-Nine Thousand Two Hundred Eighty-Two (29,282) active COVID-19 cases in the Philippines; NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, as it is hereby resolved, that the IATF approves the following: A. The recommendations of the IATF Technical Working Group on COVID-19 New Variants are adopted. Effective February 1, 2021, the testing and quarantine protocols for all persons allowed entry in the Philippines shall be as follows:
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1. Arriving passengers, regardless of origin, shall be required to undergo facility-based quarantine upon arrival; 2. Unless the passenger exhibits symptoms at an earlier date while on quarantine, Reverse Transcription Polymerase Chain Reaction (RT-PCR) test shall be conducted on the fifth day from date of arrival in the Philippines; 3. If the RT-PCR test yields a negative result, the passenger shall be endorsed to their local government units of destination who shall then coordinate transfer of said passenger from quarantine facility to the LGU and strictly monitor the remainder of the fourteen-day quarantine through their respective Barangay Health Emergency Response Teams; and 4. In all of the foregoing, appropriate patient management as outlined in the Philippine Society for Microbiology and Infectious Diseases guidelines and the Department of Health Omnibus Interim Guidelines on Prevention, Detection, Isolation, Treatment and Reintegration Strategies for COVID-19 shall still be observed. All other testing and quarantine protocols not inconsistent hereto, including the exemptions therefrom, shall continue to be in force and effect. B. In compliance with the directive of the President, the relaxation of age-based restrictions in areas under Modified General Community Quarantine effective on February 1, 2021, under IATF Resolution No. 95 issued on January 21, 2021, shall be postponed. C. The recommendations of the IATF Sub-Technical Working Group on Information and Communication Technology Solutions are adopted, the specifics of which are as follows: 1. The Department of Information and Communications Technology shall be delegated with the authority to perform any and all actions, in accordance with law, necessary to procure the services of a qualified third-party service provider that will cater to all services pertaining to the design approval, IT project implementation, and service management of the Philippine COVID-19 Vaccine Information Management System (VIMS) to ensure accurate, timely, and efficient distribution and administration of the COVID-19 vaccines. 2
2. The Department of Information and Communications Technology shall be authorized to formulate the standards to determine whether or not a thirdparty service provider is qualified to undertake the required services required in the VIMS; and 3. The Philippine COVID-19 VIMS shall be the key process automation and data capture, storage, processing, and analytics system for the immunization administration and supply chain management of the COVID-19 vaccines and its administration to the identified stakeholders, and will have the following functions: a. Citizen Vaccination Capture and Automation; b. Provider Management and Automation; c. Supply Chain Management; and d. VIMS Dashboarding, Reporting, and Analytics. RESOLVED FURTHER, that the Chairperson and the Co-Chairperson shall be duly authorized to sign this Resolution for and on behalf of the Inter-Agency Task Force. APPROVED this 26th of January 2021 via videoconference.
FRANCISCO T. DUQUE III Secretary, Department of Health IATF Chairperson
KARLO ALEXEI B. NOGRALES Secretary, Office of the Cabinet Secretary IATF Co-Chairperson
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CERTIFICATION This is to certify that: 1.
I am presently an Assistant Secretary of the Department of Health;
2.
I am the interim OIC-Head of the Secretariat of the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) on the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases created under Executive Order No. 168, series of 2014 and chaired by the Department of Health (DOH);
3.
The IATF Secretariat holds office in the DOH Main Office, San Lazaro Compound, Tayuman, Sta. Cruz, Manila;
4.
I am the custodian of the records of the IATF, including the Minutes of Meetings and Resolutions;
5.
In a regular meeting of the IATF, the IATF Resolution No. 96 was unanimously approved and adopted;
6.
The foregoing resolution has been signed by Secretary Francisco T. Duque III and Secretary Karlo Alexei B. Nograles upon the authority of the IATF Members;
7.
The aforesaid resolution has not been altered, modified nor revoked and the same is now in full force and effect;
8.
I am executing this Certification for whatever legitimate purpose this may serve.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto affixed my signature this 26th day of January 2021, Manila.
ATTY. CHARADE B. MERCADO-GRANDE OIC-Head of the Secretariat, IATF Assistant Secretary of Health
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