JTF COVID Shield suspends travel authority for LSIs to Eastern Visayas

The Joint Task Force COVID Shield has temporarily suspended the issuance of travel authority for Locally Stranded Individuals (LSIs) heading to Eastern Visayas for two weeks.

This decision was made to allow local government units (LGUs) in the region to decongest their existing quarantine facilities, which are currently full.

Interior and Local Government Secretary Eduardo Año stated that the suspension was requested by local chief executives to prevent overwhelming quarantine capabilities and to avoid home quarantines.

Eleazar confirmed the suspension, which was based on Año's instructions and the request of Region VIII's local chief executives.

LSIs applying for travel should be informed about the reasons for this temporary suspension.

The resumption of travel authority issuance will depend on the advice of the National Task Force Against COVID.

Recent spikes in COVID-19 cases in Eastern Visayas have been attributed to the arrival of LSIs, although no deaths have been recorded in the region.