Ni NOEL ABUEL
Nanawagan si House Ways and Means chairman at Albay Rep. Joey Sarte Salceda sa mga kapwa nito kongresista sa 19th Congress na unahing ipasa ang Center for Disease Control charter bunsod na rin ng monkeypox infections na sinasabing mahirap malaman o ma-diagnose.
Ginawa ni Salceda ang apela base na rin sa ginawang rekomendasyon ng US Center for Disease Control na ang mga naitalang kaso ng monkeypox na natukoy ay hindi nagpapakita ng anumang sintomas kung kaya’t mahirap itong matukoy.
“We have seen presentations of monkeypox that are mild and sometimes only limited areas of the body, which differs from the classic presentation seen in endemic countries in Western Central Africa,” ayon kay Rochelle Walensky, pinuno ng CDC na sa pinakahuling datos ay nasa 1,300 kaso ang naitatala sa buong mundo.
“These infections, whether mild or serious, will come to the Philippines. As I’ve learned in my term as Governor of Albay, nature will come at you, so you have to have the capacity to deal with it. You have to have the institutions, the surge capacity, the culture, and the resources to adapt,” sabi naman ni Salceda.
“We will get more zoonotic diseases, or diseases that come from animals, as the world begins to lose more natural habitats to farming or urbanization. That will mean more interactions between humans and wild animals, and therefore, more chances of zoonosis. Of course, part of the long-term solution is to prevent these habitats from being denuded. As one of the world’s most biodiverse countries, we have to play a big part in that. And we have to ask the world for help in preventing the loss of natural habitats in the country,” paliwanag pa nito.
Ang panukala ni Salceda sa pagkakaroon ng Center for Disease Control and Prevention, na nakapaloob sa umiiral na infectious disease units sa bansa, na may pinalawak na health emergency powers, at mga kawani na sinanay sa mga “sudden-onset” health emergencies tulad ng COVID-19.
“I hope President Marcos will also make it his priority, as PRRD did. Sayang, it was sponsored in the Senate floor, but there was not enough time in the 18th Congress. So, I will refile it, and this time, we will hopefully be able to get it through Congress. Because the infections you want to deal with will not go away,” sabi pa nito.
Sa kasalukuyan ay wala pang naitatalang kaso ng monkeypox sa bansa subalit sinabi ng Department of Health (DOH) na nakahanda na ito laban dito.
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