MANILA (UPDATE) as of May 28, 2020)- The Philippines is stepping up its testing capacity for the new coronavirus disease (COVID-19), as more cases of the disease are recorded in the country.

The Philippines already has polymerase chain reaction-based COVID-19 testing centers in the following areas:

LUZON:

NCR
* Research Institute for Tropical Medicine
* San Lazaro Hospital
* UP National Institutes of Health
* Lung Center of the Philippines
* St. Luke's Medical Center- QC
* The Medical City - Ortigas
* Victoriano Luna -AFRIMS
* Molecular Diagnostics Laboratory
* St. Luke's Medical Center - BGC
* Makati Medical Center
* Philippine Red Cross
* Chinese Gen. Hospital
* PRC-PLMC
* Philippine Genome Center UP-Diliman
* Marikina Molecular Diagnostic Laboratory
* UP-PGH Molecular Laboratory
* Singapore Diagnostic, Inc.
* Asian Hospital & Medical Center
* PNP Crime Laboratory
* National Kidney and Transplant Institute

CAR
* Baguio General Hospital and Medical Center

Region I
* Ilocos Training Regional Medical Center

Region III
* J.B. Lingad Memorial Hospital

Region IV-A
* De La Salle University - Cavite
* Lucena United Doctors Hospital and Medical Center

Region V
* Bicol Regional Diagnostic and Reference Laboratory

VISAYAS

Region VI
* Western Visayas Medical Center

Region VII
* Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center
* Allegiant Regional Care Hospital
* Cebu TB Reference Laboratory

Region VIII
* Eastern Visayas Regional Medical Center
* Divine Word Hospital

MINDANAO

Region IX
* Zamboanga City Medical Center - DA Satellite Lab

Region XI
* Southern Visayas Regional Medical Center

There are also several GeneXpert laboratories in the country. These labs use test kits that are still PCR-based but yield faster results. Tests reportedly run for less than an hour.

GENEXPERT LABORATORIES
*Cagayan Valley CHD GeneXpert Laboratory
*Cotabato Regional Medical Center GeneXpert Laboratory
*Dr. Jose N. Rodriguez Memorial Hospital & Sanitarium (TALA)
GeneXpert Laboratory
*Lung Center of the Philippines GeneXpert Laboratory
*Northern Mindanao Medical Center GeneXpert Laboratory
*Ospital ng Palawan GeneXpert Laboratory
*Tondo Medical Center GeneXpert Laboratory
*Zamboanga City Medical Center GeneXpert Laboratory

• READ: PH’s COVID-19 laboratories now at 30 with new GeneXpert labs