Antique capital logs first COVID-19 case

San Jose, Antique Mayor Elmer Untaran (right) and Municipal Health Officer Melba Billones (left) reveal to the media on Moday the town’s first confirmed case of coronavirus disease 2019. Billones said 17 individuals are now under home quarantine after they were exposed to the patient. PNA
San Jose, Antique Mayor Elmer Untaran (right) and Municipal Health Officer Melba Billones (left) reveal to the media on Moday the town’s first confirmed case of coronavirus disease 2019. Billones said 17 individuals are now under home quarantine after they were exposed to the patient. PNA

SAN JOSE, Antique – An overseas Filipino worker who is a resident of Barangay San Pedro in this capital town tested positive for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), results released by the Department of Health-Western Visayas Center for Health Development showed. 
Mayor Elmer Untaran said this capital town’s first confirmed case, a 27-year-old female, was preparing to return to her work in the United Arab Emirates. She underwent swab testing on July 23.

“The result of her reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) test came out only on July 26,” said Untaran.

San Jose Municipal Health Officer Melba Billones, for her part, said 17 individuals are now under home quarantine after they were exposed to the patient. 
“Ten of them were with the patient since she arrived last March,” she added.

According to Billones, 10 of the individuals – all family members of the patient – yielded negative results for the virus in their rapid diagnostic testing on July 27. 

“The seven others were with the patient on July 26 only because the latter was supposed to have a farewell party,” Billones said.

These seven individuals are also being quarantined in the house of the patient.

“They will undergo RPT-PCR (testing) within seven days if they will have signs and symptoms of the virus,” said Billones.

San Remigio Mayor Margarito Mission, meanwhile, issued another official statement that their municipality has already three confirmed cases of COVID-19.

Mission said the two new confirmed cases were exposed to the first positive patient of the town, a 22-year-old female.

They traveled together from Quezon City to San Remigio town in this province last July 17.

The specimens of the two other patients were collected on July 24 and released on July 27.

“We are appealing to the public to always wash your hands, wear your facemasks, apply proper physical distancing, avoid non-essential travel, and observe health standards to prevent the transmission of COVID-19,” Mission said.

The patients, all in the isolation facility of the municipality, are in stable condition, he added. (With a report from PNA/PN)

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