BY ADRIAN STEWART CO AND GLENDA TAYONA
MANILA – Orders nixing the mandatory use of face shields in crowded and enclosed spaces were “null and void,” according to Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque.
The policy remains in effect unless the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID) says otherwise, said Roque.
“Those decisions by local government units were null and void for being in violation of an existing executive policy decreed by the President (Rodrigo Duterte),” Roque said during Monday’s Malacañang virtual presser.
Roque added: “Hindi naman po natin sinasabi na hindi tatanggalin ‘yan pero ‘antayin naman po natin ang desisyon ng IATF.”
In Iloilo City, Mayor Jerry Treñas already ditched mandatory face shields in malls and other establishments while waiting for the Sangguniang Panlungsod (SP) to amend the Face Mask/Face Shield Ordinance which mandates the use of such.
In a letter to the SP last week, the mayor asked for the suspension of the mandatory use of face shields under Regulatory Ordinance No. 2020-061 beginning Nov. 5.
According to the Treñas, the use of face shields has “not been proven effective” in blocking cough aerosols, which are one of the main transmission modes of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).
However, the mayor clarified that in hospitals, their protocols on the wearing of face shields must be followed.
On other hand, Department of Health (DOH) undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire agreed with Roque.
“We have committed to the IATF that by Thursday we will be presenting to them an updated recommendation on the use of face shield,” Vergeire said.
Pending the IATF’s decision, Vergeire urged local government units to hold, for the meantime, their order make the wearing of face shields optional.
Dr. Bea Camille Natalaray of DOH Region 6 also said the guidelines on the use of face shields should have the concurrence of eight government agencies that created a Join Memorandum Circular (JMC).
Natalaray said the use of face shields, especially in the three Cs (closed spaces, crowded places, and close contact areas), should stay.
“Please wear your face shields as another layer of protection,” she said./PN
