DOH offers free monkeypox testing in gov hospitals

The Department of Health (DOH) announced that suspected monkeypox cases can receive free testing services in government hospitals.

Health Secretary Teodoro Herbosa confirmed this during a House Committee on Appropriations hearing, emphasizing that PhilHealth is creating a benefit package for mpox testing due to an impending shortage of test kits and the need to procure additional ones.

Herbosa advised frequent handwashing as a preventive measure, noting that prolonged and intimate skin-to-skin contact increases transmission risk but minimal contact in crowded places or on train rides is not significant.

The DOH recorded three new cases on Sunday, bringing the total number of active cases to eight since July 2022, with 17 mpox cases listed overall.