News Roundup 19 December 2020
Dec 19, 2020 • 4 min Read
COVID-19 infections in Philippines breach 458,000, deaths now at 8,911 | PHILSTAR.COM – The Department of Health confirmed 1,491 mores cases of novel coronavirus on Saturday, bringing the national caseload to 458,044. Of the total cases recorded, 28,047 — or 6.1% are marked active, which means these patients are still undergoing quarantine or treatment. Recovered patients are at 421,086, after 436 more people were reported to have survived the deadly virus. However, the DOH logged 36 new fatalities, bringing the country’s total death toll to 8,911.
As #NasaanAngBisePresidente trends, Robredo has been helping out all along | PHILSTAR.COM – Netizens critical of Vice President Leni Robredo began looking for her as they claimed that she had been missing in action as parts of Mindanao was hit by massive flooding brought by Tropical Depression Vicky. But it turns out that she had been helping out all along. “I’m here,” Robredo said in Filipino on her personal Facebook account, clapping back at a Twitter user asking for her whereabouts. “We’ve been coordinating with affected areas.” President Rodrigo Duterte has yet to personally address the flooding in his home region of Mindanao, but Malacañang said in a statement that he is monitoring the situation brought about by Vicky.
2 US vaccine makers can supply PH – envoy | INQUIRER.NET – The Philippines will be able to secure between 4 million to 25 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines from Moderna Inc. and Arcturus Therapeutics Holdings Inc., Manila’s ambassador to Washington said on Friday. The US companies would be ready to supply the vaccines from the third quarter of 2021, if the Duterte government found their proposals acceptable, Ambassador Jose Manuel Romualdez said in a statement. “We are hoping our government will consider the promising candidates of Moderna and Arcturus for inclusion in our country’s pool of anti-COVID-19 vaccines,” Romualdez said. A US panel of experts on Thursday voted to recommend emergency approval of the Moderna vaccine, paving the way for six million doses to start shipping as soon as this weekend.US President Donald Trump in a tweet on Friday said Moderna’s vaccine had been approved and would ship immediately, although the US Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) has made no public announcement yet regarding its decision. This makes Moderna’s vaccine the second to be approved in a Western country. The Philippines had missed out on an opportunity to buy 10 million doses of Pfizer’s vaccine for delivery in January, Romualdez said.
Locsin: Pompeo to help PH secure Pfizer COVID vaccine | Manila Bulletin – Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr. revealed Saturday that US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo will give his best to help the Philippines get even a fraction of the Pfizer vaccine deal after “someone dropped the ball.” Locsin said in a Twitter post that he had a phone conversation with Pompeo Friday night and they were able to talk about the Pfizer vaccine deal for COVID-19. “Great phone conversation with Mike Pompeo last night. Lotsa laughs at others. But on the most serious note I asked him to help Babe (Philippine Ambassador to the United States Babe Romualdez) and I get back even a fraction of the 10 million doses of Pfizer after someone dropped the ball,” Locsin said. He added that Pompeo will try his best to help the country. “He’ll give it his best try. Babe’s securing Moderna,” the Justice Secretary said, adding that the ambassador is also working on the vaccine deal with Moderna. Locsin had earlier disclosed that 10 million doses of vaccine from Pfizer would be shipped to the Philippines in January “but somebody dropped the ball.”
Continued aid assured for workers displaced by pandemic – Angara | The Manila Times – Sen. Juan Edgardo “Sonny” Angara on Friday assured that workers affected by the disruptions caused by the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic will continue to receive assistance from the Department of Labor and Employment (DoLE) next year as a result of the interventions made by Congress in the 2021 national budget. Angara, the Chairman of the Committee on Finance, said the members of Congress were all in agreement that the workers affected by the pandemic should continue to receive some form of assistance from the government in 2021 because many of them remain jobless. He explained this is why Congress increased DoLE’s funding for its Tulong Panghanapbuhay sa Ating Disadvantaged or Displaced Workers Program (Tupad) and also the Government Internship Program (GIP).
