MAAARI umanong italaga ni Pangulong Duterte si Health Sec. Francisco Duque bilang vide chairman ng National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council upang maging mabilis ang aksyon laban sa 2019 coronavirus.
Ayon kay Albay Rep. Joey Salceda, chairman ng House committee on ways and means, ganito ang ginawa noon sa kasagsagan ng 2009 AH1N1 epidemic.
“That gives him access to the entire government disaster response machinery and resources. The Interagency Task Force on Emerging Diseases (IATF) is no longer sufficiently equipped with legislated and collegial authority to deal with the massive need for contact tracing, surveillance and containment to confront sudden onset or rapid onset of health hazards and to maintain public confidence and discourage dysfunctional public behavior which could overwhelm our national health system,” ani Salceda.
Nanawagan naman sa publiko si Quezon Rep. Angelina Tan, chairwoman ng House committee on health na huwag mag-panic sa unang kaso ng 2019 coronavirus sa bansa.
“I call on the public to be calm, cautious, and responsible by observing cleanliness, coughing etiquette, and personal hygiene at all times,” ani Tan.
Naniniwala si Tan na ang DoH ay nakahanda na sa bagong sakit na ito.
“And now that it is here, I believe that the government, the DOH in particular, is already on top of the situation given the proactive response by various agencies of government,” dagdag pa ni Tan.
“It has been made clear during the Question Hour with Secretary Francisco Duque that the necessary health protocol and infrastructure are in place to accommodate 2019-nCOV patients.”