PRC opens 14th molecular lab in Cotabato City

The Philippine Red Cross (PRC) inaugurated its 14th molecular laboratory in Cotabato City on September 18, 2021, to boost nationwide COVID-19 testing capacity.

The facility is equipped with two PCR machines and one RNA extractor, capable of processing up to 2,000 tests daily.

This laboratory, established in partnership with the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), will serve Cotabato City and the neighboring provinces of Maguindanao, North Cotabato, South Cotabato, and Davao City.

PRC Chairman and CEO Senator Richard Gordon highlighted the partnership with the ICRC and stated that the new lab would significantly increase testing capacity from the current 200 tests per day at the Cotabato Regional and Medical Center to 2,000 tests per day, thus hastening the COVID-19 response.

PRC's molecular laboratories across the country conducted a total of 17,361 coronavirus tests on September 17, 2021, one of the organization's highest testing outputs since the pandemic began.