Dinagat Islands is now requiring travelers, including returning residents, to present a negative swab test result for coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) before they can be allowed to enter the province.

In Executive Order (EO) 08-01 issued on Aug. 2, Governor Arlene “Kaka” Bag-ao said this is among the measures to prevent the entry of the Delta variant into the province.

The province is under general community quarantine from August 1 to 31.

“There is no known Delta and/or South African variants that are currently present in the Province of Dinagat Islands. Nevertheless, the province shall implement mechanisms to prevent the entry of such variants,” Bag-ao said.

She noted that as of August 1, the province has recorded a total of 1,205 Covid-19 cases, with 1,106 recoveries, 35 active cases, and 64 deaths.

Bag-ao added that privileges for fully vaccinated residents cannot be implemented yet as the province has yet to achieve population protection.

“The desirable situation for herd immunity is 70,000 of the total population of the province. As of now, only 9 percent of the eligible population has been fully vaccinated,” Bag-ao said.

Under the new EO, residents who cannot comply with the required negative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) test result may opt to undergo a 10-day quarantine under the supervision of the municipal governments.

They will undergo quarantine in the designated facilities such as the municipal care and containment centers, according to the order.

“Entry of other persons specifically for medical emergencies, transportation of essential goods and services, banking and other financial transactions, government infrastructure projects that have existing contracts, and employees of the national line agencies (NLAs) shall be coordinated with the Provincial Inter-Agency Task Force Secretariat only,” the order said.

It added that NLA employees shall be required to present negative RT-PCR results, or, in the absence of such requirement, may also opt to undergo a 10-day quarantine in their respective agency care and containment centers. (PNA)