Taiwan will no longer require travelers from PH to stay in isolation facilities

MANILA - Starting next week, Taiwan will no longer require travelers from the Philippines to undergo 14-day quarantine in isolation facilities upon their arrival, Taiwanese health officials said.

Taiwanese media outlet Central News Agency (CNA) reported that Minister of Health and Welfare Chen Shih-chung, who heads the island's Central Epidemic Command Center, announced the new policy Wednesday.

Chen said that this is due to the declining coronavirus positivity rate in the Philippines.

Beginning Nov. 9, travelers from the Philippines without COVID-19 symptoms can undergo mandatory 2-week quarantine and 1-week self-health management at home, the official said.

Chen added that at the end of the isolation period, travelers from the Philippines will no longer be required to undergo a COVID-19 test.

According to CNA, 1,294 guests from the Philippines have been tested on arrival since Sept. 24, when Taiwanese officials mandated to test all passengers from Manila.

A group of analysts earlier Wednesday said the COVID-19 positivity rate in the Philippines' Metro Manila is declining steadily as the country's daily coronavirus cases also continue to decrease.

• PH daily infections, COVID-19 positivity rate in NCR steadily declining: OCTA group

The average number of new cases per day for the whole Philippines went down to around 1,800, while the new average in Metro Manila is at 490, a significant improvement from August when it was at 2,500, according to the OCTA group, which is composed of professors from the University of the Philippines, the University of Santo Tomas, and Providence College in the United States.

The Philippines' total number of confirmed coronavirus cases stands at 388,137, after recently reporting 987 additional infections which is the lowest recorded daily tally since July 14 when the country logged 603 cases.