Coronavirus patients quarantined in homes not up to Department of Health (DOH) standards will be brought to government-run isolation facilities, Interior Secretary Eduardo Año said on Tuesday, July 14.

“Ayaw na po natin mag-home quarantine ang mga positive natin kung
wala naman po talagang kapasidad ‘yung kanilang bahay (We don’t want positive cases going on home quarantine if their homes have no capacity for it),” Año said in an interview with reporters in Taguig.

“What we will do, with the help of the LGU (local government unit) and the PNP (Philippine National Police), is we will go house-to-house and will bring the positive cases to our COVID isolation facilities,” he added.

Why does this matter? The Department of Health (DOH) outlined guidelines for proper home quarantine through a memorandum on February 17. Año’s statement is the government’s first signal that they will enforce it.

The DOH earlier clarified that they are not banning home isolation, it’s just that they want patients to isolate following their standards, which include strict disinfection, disposal, and distancing rules. – Rappler.com