Bacolod City, Negros Occidental— In its effort to curb the possible spread of the deadly COVID-19 Delta variant, Mayor Evelio Leonardia has ordered the temporary suspension of leisure travel between the city and Panay.
In his Executive Order 39-A, Series of 2021, signed Sunday, July 18 and will take effective immediately, the mayor said that until further notice, only Authorized Persons Outside their Residence (APOR) shall be allowed to travel from Panay Island into or out from this city.
But Leonardia said that those areas in Panay that are under General Community Quarantine and Modified General Community Quarantine may be allowed subject to a negative RT-PCR result which must have been obtained within 72 hours prior to and upon arrival in Bacolod. Travelers are also required to complete their travel documents and submission of SPass for approval. The city requires travelers to have a BaCTrac ID, completion of the online health declaration form, travel coordination permit and a valid ID.
RT-PCR FOR FULLY VACCINATED BACOLOD RESIDENTS
On the same EO, Leonardia has also revoked his previous order where fully vaccinated Bacolod residents with vaccination card issued by the Emergency Operations Center are no longer required to present a negative swab test. With this change, Bacolod residents will again be required to present negative RT-PCR test results obtained within 72 hours prior to and upon arrival in Bacolod City.
Last Friday, the Department of Health in Western Visayas confirmed the detection of two local Delta (B.1.617.2) variant cases in the region, based on the based on the latest whole genome sequencing report from the Philippine Genome Center (UP-PGC), and the University of the Philippines – National Institutes of Health (UP-NIH). The couple tested positive of the virus last May 27.
