A Department of Health (DOH) official on Wednesday said that individuals could take off their face shields when outdoors.
In a Laging Handa briefing, Health undersecretary and Philippine treatment czar Leopoldo Vega said that face shields were only required indoors.
“Alam mo, ang face shields kailangan naman talaga iyon kapag nasa indoor ka, kapag nasa mall ka or kapag may interaction ka na face-to-face,” he said.
Outdoors, the risk of Covid-19 transmission was low, de Vega said.
“Kapag nasa outside naman kasi alam naman natin ang risk of transmission is very low at lalung-lalo na kapag naglalakad ka lang sa kalye o kaya nagtatrabaho kasi mag-a-affect iyong moist nito,” he said.
“So, puwede ninyo hong tanggalin ho iyan pero kapag pumasok kayo sa mga indoors ho kailangan may face shields kasi ito iyong added protection na hindi kayo maka-transmit o mahawaan kayo,” he added.
Face shields are sheets of clear plastic that cover the full length of an individual’s face until the chin.
Vega’s higher-ups in the Department of Health and the Inter-Agency Task Force on Emerging Infectious Diseases have been consistent in asserting that face shields were required despite calls to abolish the requirement.
The Philippine government made mandatory the wearing of face shields nationwide in December last year, nine months since the first community quarantine was imposed in the country.
According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, face shields are not effective in protecting an individual from respiratory droplets. John Ezekiel J. Hirro