DAVAO CITY (MindaNews / 25 May) — The City of Mati in Davao Oriental has established a four-level health screening procedure to monitor returning residents and other travelers entering the locality, an official said Monday.
Dr. Ben Hur Catbagan, Jr., head of the city’s Incident Management Team (IMT), said that travelers, especially those coming from Davao City, the epicenter of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in Mindanao, will first be subjected to a health check at the Pintatagan border of Davao de Oro and Davao Oriental.
After passing the inspection, they will be again subjected to the second level of health screening at the Tagomot border between the municipality of San Isidro and Mati City and at the Tagawisan checkpoint just before entering the city proper.
The third level of the health screening will be conducted at the transport terminals upon the arrival of the travelers.
The designated barangay quarantine checkpoints will handle the fourth level of health screening, before returning residents will be permitted to go back to their respective homes.
According to the local government, travelers who would fail the health screenings will be immediately sent to the Alternate Care Site for swab testing and isolation.
It also said that those who come from Davao City will also be asked to sign an agreement for a mandatory 14-day quarantine to monitor COVID-19 symptoms during their stay in the city.
Catbagan said the IMT would welcome all Matinians who would want to return home but that they must follow all the health guidelines in place to ensure that the community is protected from COVID-19. (Warren Elijah E. Valdez / MindaNews)
