Philippines' biggest molecular lab opens as COVID-19 testing center -PRC

The biggest molecular laboratory in the country was formally opened on Saturday as a coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) testing center by the Philippine Red Cross at the Port Area in Manila.

According to PRC chairman Richard Gordon, this will contribute greatly in containing the virus as it will increase the country's testing capacity.

“Our molecular laboratory in Manila is equipped with seven (7) RNAs with 14 polymerase chain reaction (PCR) machines that are capable of testing 14,000 samples per day," Gordon said in a statement.

"This will really help us ramp up our testing capacity so that more people will get tested all over the country. With more testing capacity, we can easily identify those who are positive and segregate them from those who were tested negative,” he added.

The chairman said that while it already has the capacity, the country is still not conducting tests fast enough.

“The whole testing in the Philippines right now is at 0.4 percent and that is very far from the 13-percentage standard of the World Health Organization... We have to move our economy and so we have to move testing,” he said, as he stressed that testing is the "key" to prevent the further spread of the virus.

As of Saturday, there are 34,803 confirmed COVID-19 cases in the country with a total of 9,430 recoveries and 1,236 fatalities. -MDM, GMA News