Del-Talk of the Town

COVID-19 continues its rampage across the world. As vaccines are being developed throughout the globe, many expect the long-awaited end to this calamity.

However, there is one obstacle in particular that prevents this from happening: the Delta variant.

Get to know the variant

Delta was first identified in India, until reaching Great Britain, then soon making its way into the United States. It is said to have an increase in transmissibility and ability to cause a severe form of disease. It is now dominant all around the world. Countries such as Mexico, Japan, Denmark, Germany, Philippines, and others have registered cases with it. There are a few major traits about the Delta variant that make it stand out from the other variants.

Delta is more contagious

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) labeled the Delta variant “a variant of concern” because of it being more contagious than other strains of the virus. According to the CDC, it is twice as contagious as the variants that came before it. Although it is more contagious, the same precautions, such as wearing face masks, maintaining distance, and avoiding crowds, still work against the said variant.

Unvaccinated people are at risk

A study from Imperial College London shows that those who are unvaccinated are more likely to get infected by the virus than those who are fully vaccinated. This includes the Delta variant as well. Those who are vaccinated, on the other hand, have a lower chance of transmitting the disease and therefore have a lower chance of spreading the delta variant as well.

Vaccination is the best defense

Doctors say that vaccination is the best protection against the variant and the disease. According to the CDC, the vaccines, namely Pfizer and Moderna, show great results in preventing severe illness, hospitalizations, and death. They also recommend booster shots for the Pfizer vaccine for those who are aged 65 and up, those with underlying medical conditions aged 18-65, and those whose work puts them at a higher risk of exposure to the virus. It is important, however, to note that those who are vaccinated may have spread the variant to those who are unvaccinated. Thus, it is still important to wear face masks, wash your hands, and practice social distancing.

Myron cARLOS ESPIRITU

Mass Testing to Mass Resignation

Overworked but underpaid, nurses in the Philippines threaten mass resignation unless given the promised benefits by the government.

This is evident, given that the government’s pandemic response has been less than impressive, as hospitals fill, new variants run rampant in the country, and workload for nurses increases by day. Jao Clumia, union president of St. Luke’s Medical Center, says that health workers are already tendering their resignations. “Healthcare workers are tired and extremely demoralized. Many have already resigned and many more want to,” Clumia stated. Healthcare workers have been a pillar of our country since the outbreak of the pandemic. So, how can we encourage them to continue their hard work? A possible solution is the payment of the promised benefits. The government allotted special risk allowances for frontline workers, including hazard pay. To be eligible for the hazard pay, a public or private health worker must deal directly with COVID-19 patients. This has been long overdue, and it could have been disbursed as soon as the pandemic began to worsen. Despite this, nurses attest that they have not been compensated as promised. This is alarming, given that the government has allotted a lot of money for special risk allowances. Frontliners have also protested the resignation of Duque. This sprouted from staff calling him out at the start of the pandemic for not having a concrete plan. On August 31, 2021, he failed to meet the deadline for the payment of promised benefits to healthcare workers, and was forced to resign once more. Duque is riding high on a wave of controversies, namely being the chairman of PhilHealth, which is filled with corruption, and for passing the blame to his subordinates, even reprimanding them in front of the media and the president. The mass resignation of health workers is not a minor issue. Going through with this could lead to the country’s pandemic response to start crashing down. Both citizens and government officials must pay attention to their requests. No one knows what they need more than themselves.

Expensive Doesn’t Mean Smart

On August 4, the Department of Health (DOH) issued a bid notice for four highend computers with accessories. But when priced at P175,000 each, it begs the question, “what type of computer could cost that much?”

Why would they need this?

According to Eric Tayag, head of the DOH’s knowledge management and information technology service office, the “2-in-1” notebook computers would be used for vaccination registration and other activities that would cause laptops with lesser specs to freeze. According to Tayag, his office requested the laptops for its developers since they need to replace the ones they already have. “Kailangan po namin, kasi kami po ‘yung gumagawa ng mga registry po. Halimbawa po ang bakuna registry, kailangan po namin mailagay po at mavisualize para maparating po sa mga policymakers kung ano na po ‘yung datos, at kailangan na po sapagkat may analytics din po,” he told the senators.

What drives up the cost?

Dell U.S. is selling an Inspiron 15 2-in-1 laptop for just P38,000 that meets the DOH’s minimal standards. Meanwhile, for P80,000, you can purchase an Acer laptop with a faster i7 CPU, 16GB of RAM, and 1 terabyte of storage, which is more than twice the P175,000 budget per unit. Dell also has a 13.4inch 2-in-1 laptop with better specs than the DOH procurement request (Intel Core i7, 512 GB storage, 16GB RAM) for P145,485, including delivery.

How did the people react?

When a public paperwork for a laptop for P175,000.000 went viral online, the DOH was severely criticized. The health department wanted to spend P700,000 for four computers, according to the bidding paperwork. The Philippines is still fighting to control the deadly virus that has infected 1.6-million people and killed over 29,000 people more than a year into the outbreak, and the government should worry the least about computers. Right after t h e

backlash from the people, according to Dr. Eric Tayag, the department canceled the transaction because a Baguio hospital was in need of money. “Ang latest update po diyan, una po kinancel na po namin ‘yan sapagkat naghahanap kami ng funds para sa kailangan po ng aming CHD (Centers for Health Development), particularly diyan po sa Baguio General Hospital Medical Center dahil kailangan po nila ng IT support,” he told the senate during an inquiry.

Instead of buying a high-priced computer, they might use this money to assist those who are having difficulty finding work during the pandemic.

During this pandemic, several controversies have plagued the infamous Pharmally Pharmaceutical Corporation. The company supplies the government with face masks, face shields, and other medical equipment, but is now under fire for allegedly overpricing said equipment.

Since the start of the pandemic, Pharmally received ₱8.68 billion in contracts from the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) despite only having ₱625,000 in paid-up capital. It made no sales that year and had a declared net loss of ₱25,500. However, in the following year, the corporation’s sales increased to around ₱7.5 billion. The corporation produced a gross profit of P393 million and a net profit of ₱265 million because of the DBM transactions.

Pharmal-issue

“Official records will show that it sold face masks at a whopping ₱27.72, when other suppliers sold the same to PSDBM [Procurement Service Office-DBM] at ₱13.5, ₱16, and ₱17.50 for the same period,” said Senator Franklin Drilon during a senate hearing on the topic. “It sold test kits at ₱1,720 when it could be bought at ₱925. It sold at ₱1,910 each when its market cost is at ₱945,” he added.

Related to this, Senator Risa Hontiveros presented data that shows infrared thermometers were sold to the Department of Transportation (DOTr) at ₱3,200 per piece, while their catalog for allegedly the same period listed the price for the same item as ₱2,000, during a Senate blue ribbon committee hearing. Pharmally continues to be the focus of the Senate’s investigation on the Commission of Audit (COA) report, which showed the shortages of Department of Health (DOH) funds equivalent to ₱67.32 billion. Part of this is the ₱42 billion transferred by the DOH to PS-DBM, which was used for contracts worth ₱8.7 billion to Pharmally, in spite of having just ₱625,000 in paid-up capital.

EMMANUEL CONTI JR.