Sen. Pangilinan backs stricter ECQ call by health workers

Senator Francis Pangilinan supports the call of healthcare workers to reimpose a stricter enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) in the National Capital Region (NCR).

Medical groups, including the Filipino Nurses United (FNU), have requested a two-week ECQ to allow for the development of a better pandemic strategy and to address understaffing issues.

FNU officer Jaymee de Guzman clarified that the ECQ appeal is not for healthcare workers to go on vacation but to allow them time to strategize, recover, and prevent further illness among their ranks.

De Guzman expressed frustration over some politicians dismissing the call, misinterpreting it as laziness or a need for more effort, when the reality is that healthcare workers themselves are falling ill.

She emphasized that a temporary ECQ would reduce public movement and transmission rates.

Pangilinan highlighted the importance of listening to frontliners and urged the government to implement a clear system and actively consult experts in addressing the health crisis.