As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to impact the tourism industry, Acting Mayor Frolibar Bautista of Malay, Aklan, is pushing for the cheaper and faster rapid antibody test to screen tourists and workers headed to Boracay Island. 

Bautista said this is the recommendation of Boracay business owners battered by low occupancy rates even after Boracay started accepting tourists from general community quarantine (GCQ) areas on October 1.

Tourists traveling to Boracay Island are required to submit a negative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) test within 72 hours prior to arrival,  as well as confirmed hotel bookings. 

“Kahit pa 72 hours prior to travel ang RT-PCR test, wala halos na bisita sa Boracay. Mababa ang hotel occupancy natin, mga 10% (Even if the RT-PCR test requirement is 72 hours prior to travel, there are very few visitors to Boracay. The hotel occupancy is low, around 10%),” Bautista said.

“Dumadaing na ang mga business establishments natin. Nagbukas sila tapos walang bisita. Baka pauwiin uli nila ang mga workers at magsarado kapag patuloy na mababa ang arrivals (Our business establishments are lamenting that though Boracay is open to tourists, no one is coming. They may send their workers back home and shut down if the low arrivals continue),” he added. 

The acting mayor pointed out the RT-PCR is costly for incoming travelers compared to the rapid test, and that results for the latter are out in less than an hour.  

The Department of Health (DOH), however,  has repeatedly reminded the public that reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) tests remain the “gold standard” for confirming COVID-19.  

“The use of rapid antibody tests is not recommended for use in screening, return-to-work decisions, entry-to-country/province policies, or for similar use due to its low sensitive and high false negative rates, as well as uncertainties to its connection to immunity,” the DOH said in August.

From October 1 to 25, 1,944 tourists from Metro Manila and Western Visayas visited Boracay. Of this number, 57% or 1,113 visitors came from Metro Manila.

Bautista said the proposal will be taken up  during a meeting with Aklan Governor Florencio Miraflores, stakeholders, and the tourism sector on Saturday, October 31, where they would also brainstorm on how to revive Boracay’s once bustling travel and hospitality sectors. 

The proposal will be endorsed to the Boracay Inter-Agency Task Force (BIATF), for approval of the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID).

Meanwhile, Barangay Caticlan Chairman Ralf Tolosa said an accredited rapid testing center is setting up a facility at the Caticlan Civic Center in mainland Malay.

Boracay  accepted travelers from Western Visayas starting June, and those from GCQ areas beginning October. From June 16 to October 25, There have been close to 7,000 tourist arrivals in the island.

The low tourist arrivals in Boracay is expected to continue as the island has no official air bubble and travel agreements with select countries to lure back travelers. China and South Korea are Boracay’s biggest international markets.

Boracay business owners suffered a blow in 2018, when President Rodrigo Duterte ordered the island shut down to tourists for 6 months, to pave the way for its rehabilitation. – Rappler.com