The Department of Tourism said Tuesday it was proposing to shorten the quarantine for fully vaccinated Filipinos returning to the Philippines.
The quarantine can be cut to seven days from 10 to help encourage Filipinos abroad to travel to the Philippines, said Tourism Sec. Bernadette Romulo-Puyat.
"The goal is as more and more Filipinos are vaccinated, then maybe we can take a look at lessening the quarantine days. But as of now we just want from 10 to seven days at least,” she said in an interview on ANC.
ALSO READ:
For Future Flights, Tourism Sec. Puyat Backs Vaccine Passports
Travelers arriving in the Philippines are required to undergo facility-based quarantine where they are tested for COVID-19 on the seventh day.
Last month, President Rodrigo Duterte said that he was "not comfortable" with shortening the quarantine requirement for returning Filipinos after Labor Sec. Silvestre Bello III proposed it.
Puyat said the long quarantine period supposedly discourages Filipinos abroad from traveling to the Philippines. She added that many Filipinos abroad have already been fully vaccinated against COVID-19.
"The point is we have to start somewhere," the tourism chief said. "We are still proposing at least shorter quarantine days to encourage them to come home."
The Philippines is eyeing to ramp up its COVID-19 vaccination efforts by June as more vaccines are expected to be available by the second half of the year.
ALSO READ:
300,000 Moderna Vaccines Arriving in Philippines in June, Says Envoy
Economic Frontliners to Get Vaccines as Priority List Expands
Reportr is now on Quento. Download the app on iOS and Android or visit the Quento website for more articles and videos from Reportr and your favorite websites.
