IATF to review Alert Level 3 guidelines amid increasing COVID-19 cases

The Inter-Agency Task Force will review the guidelines for Alert Level 3 areas amid the increasing COVID-19 cases, the Palace said Monday.

Acting presidential spokesperson Karlo Nograles made the announcement three days after Metro Manila was placed under the stricter Alert Level 3 from January 3 to 15 amid the surge in COVID-19 cases and the emergence of the more transmissible Omicron variant.

Alert Level 3 prohibits gathering of people in residences if they are not from the same household. It also bans senior citizens or those aged 60 and above, as well as those aged 18 and below, from leaving the house unless it is for purchasing essential goods or going to work in permitted industries.

Alert Level 3, however, allows individual outdoor exercises for all ages and maintains the 70% operational capacity for public transport implemented under Alert Level 2 areas.

"This [Alert Level 3 guidelines] is something we will revisit, the technical working group will meet today and the IATF will have a meeting tomorrow to talk about this," Nograles said in an ANC interview.

"NCR has the highest COVID-19 vaccination rate, and we drafted these guidelines when our vaccination rate was still low and those aged 17 and below are not covered by the vaccination yet," he added.

The National Capital Region's COVID-19 vaccination rate is at least 95%.

The government was only able to include those aged 17 and below in the COVID-19 vaccination program in mid-November 2021, when the COVID-19 vaccine supply has been stable enough.

Administration of COVID-19 booster shots for everyone followed.

Around 50 million Filipinos are fully vaccinated against COVID-19 so far.

This number, however, is short of the government's target of vaccinating 54 million Filipinos by year end.

The government is eyeing to fully vaccinate 77 million Filipinos by March 2022 and 90 million by June 2022.—AOL/RSJ, GMA News