Iloilo City Mayor Jerry P. Treñas is pushing for the establishment of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) testing laboratory at Iloilo International Airport.
In a press briefing on Monday, Treñas revealed that he texted General Carlito Galvez Jr., chief implementer of the National Task Force on COVID-19, about the plan to put up polymerase chain reaction (PCR) laboratory in the airport.
According to Treñas, Galvez agreed, saying that he will tell Department of Transportation (DOTr) to set up a ‘one-stop-shop’ with a laboratory just like in Cebu airport.
“It’s not just a machine. It’s a one-stop-shop which will include all the machineries: PCR machine, RNA extraction machine, and the laboratory. Maybe similar to the one in Qualimed,” Treñas explained, referring to the recently opened COVID-19 testing lab at the Ayala-owned private hospital in Atri Park District, Mandurriao.
If it will push through, Treñas said that the Iloilo City Government will help provide staffing for its operation.
“Once their will be serious talks about this, I will talk to airport management regarding its staffing. If needed, we are ready to help out,” Treñas added.
The COVID-19 lab at the airport will a great help in releasing the test results at the earliest possible time, he said.
Last week, Mactan-Cebu International Airport (MCIA) started the operations of Philippines’ first airport-dedicated COVID-19 PCR testing laboratory which can process 1,500 to 3,000 tests per day with test results available within 24 hours.
