Covid Spike Disrupts Airlines, Virus Tests in Philippines

(Bloomberg) -- A surge in Covid-19 cases has prompted airlines in the Philippines to cancel flights, while the health department warned of delays in virus test results amid staff shortage in laboratories.

“Some cancellations or schedule adjustments are likely,” billionaire Lucio Tan’s Philippine Airlines Inc. said in a statement Friday. Many employees in ticket offices, contact centers and support teams can’t report to work, it said.

Rival Cebu Air Inc. said it preemptively canceled some flights through Jan. 10, and is reviewing schedules and monitoring manpower as some staff are on quarantine. 

Covid test results are taking longer to be released due to high demand and as workers in laboratories get sick, Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said in a televised briefing Friday. This will also delay the reporting of infections, she said. St. Luke’s Medical Center, in a Facebook post, said its turnaround time for RT-PCR test results is within two days. 

To avoid staff shortage, hospitals will also be allowed to shorten health workers’ quarantine to five days, Cabinet Secretary Karlo Nograles said late Thursday.

Four in 10 persons checked for Covid-19 in the Philippines tested positive, according to health department data. Reported daily infections were 21,819 on Friday, compared to 2,961 a week before. 

The government tightened movement restrictions in the capital and nearby provinces this week, limiting capacity in some businesses. Economic managers estimate the move may cost the economy in 3 billion pesos ($58.4 million) per week.

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