PH to receive 120,500 COVID-19 test kits from 4 countries

The Philippines is set to receive a total of 120,500 COVID-19 test kits from China, South Korea, Brunei, and Singapore to increase its testing capacity.

China has already donated 100,000 test kits, along with masks and personal protective equipment (PPE).

Singapore is donating 3,000 test kits and one Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) Machine.

In addition to these donations, the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine (RITM) has 1,300 available test kits, with another 2,050 expected from China and South Korea.

The Department of Health (DOH) is working to establish two additional laboratories for COVID-19 testing at the Western Visayas Medical Center and Bicol Public Health Laboratory.

Five private hospitals—St. Luke's Medical Center- Global City, Makati Medical Center, The Medical City, St. Luke's Medical Center-Quezon City, and Chinese General Hospital—are also being assessed to become extension laboratories.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved eight testing kits from South Korea, China, and Germany for commercial use, allowing hospitals with laboratory capabilities to procure and use them.

Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire stated that mass testing is not yet necessary, but the government is studying the proposal.