MANILA, Philippines – Pinamamadali ni Albay Rep at House, Ways and Means Chairman Joey Salceda sa Senado ang pagpasa sa Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) bill sa katwirang kailangan ito ng bansa sa harap na rin ng banta ng mga sakit dala ng El Nino Phenomenon.
Ayon kay Salceda, ang El Nino season ay “hotbed for epidemics” kaya naman kailangan na maging handa ang Department of Health sa pagtugon sa mga sakit gaya ng cholera, Chikungunya at Zika virus.
“Tropical diseases can be particularly problematic. Global studies indicate a spike of between 2.5% to 28% in cases during El Nino activities. El Nino is a hotbed for epidemics – climate is warmer than usual, and people have less water available,” ani Salceda.
“So, we should be working on adaptations such as mandating LGUs to clean up, hospitals to probabilistically allocate resources among probably tropical diseases, and the DOH to do the coordination work and provide close guidance. We can anticipate what will happen more or less, because the models teach us when, how long, and how bad it can be,” dagdag pa ng mambabatas.
Ani Salceda, ang pagpasa sa CDC bill ay makatutulong sa mga extreme weather events gaya ng El Nino at La Nina.
“The CDC would definitely add institutional muscle to our preparations, especially since El Nino could persist until 2024. Now that the Senate version has already been certified as urgent, I am hopeful that we will have a bill ready for President Marcos’s signature before he makes his second State of the Nation Address,” pahayag pa niya.
Sinabi ng mambabatas na umaasa siya na sa pagbabalik ng sesyon ng Kongreso sa Mayo 8 ay sisimulan na ng Senado ang pagtalakay sa CDC bill.
Sa ilalim ng panukala ay mas matututukan ang emerging o re-emerging infectious diseases na siya ngayong pinangangambahan sa buong mundo matapos na rin ang pandemya dulot ng COVID 19. Gail Mendoza
