THE EXECUTIVE Order (EO) issued last July 6 by Iloilo Governor Arthur R. Defensor Jr. declaring a dengue outbreak in the province will be submitted to the provincial board this week to serve as basis for the declaration of a state of calamity. Under a state of calamity, the local government will be able to access allocated emergency funds. Mr. Defensor said the provincial government is already preparing for the emergency purchase of medicines for the dengue patients. Through the EO, the governor also directed all district and provincial hospitals to extend free services and necessary assistance to all patients diagnosed with dengue. “With the onset of the rainy season, there is a continuing rise of dengue fever cases in the entire province. In accordance with the Department of Health (DoH) Department Memorandum No. 2019-0144 entitled, ‘Advisory on Dengue Preparedness and Outbreak Response,’ there is an urgent need to adopt quick response measures to dengue cases outbreak,” reads part of the EO. From Jan. 1 to June 29, the Provincial Health Office recorded 4,306 dengue cases with 20 deaths. In the same period last year, there were only 491 cases with two deaths. The municipality of Pototan recorded the highest number of cases with 425, followed by Passi City with 355, Calinog-252, Conception-240, and Ajuy-182. All local government units have also been directed to conduct clean-up drives in their respective localities. — Emme Rose S. Santiagudo

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