Guam has 3 more positive cases

Guam now has a total of eight COVID-19 cases after three more persons tested positive for the coronavirus yesterday, according to a press release from the Guam Joint Information Center.

Also, beginning on March 22, all Manila flights of United Airlines will be suspended through May 3. According to a United Airlines statement yesterday, this includes the Manila to Koror segment.

Separately, an internal memo purportedly shows the T Galleria by DFS Saipan announcing to its employees that it will be temporarily closed effective March 22. “We will monitor the situation…to determine when [would be the best time] to reopen,” said the memo. The document could not be independently verified as of press time.

Also, the Facebook page of the Office of the Governor announced that a surveillance case that the CNMI sent to Guam last week for testing turned out to be negative.

As of March 18, 2020, the CNMI remains without a confirmed case of COVID-19.

According to a statement last night, the Guam Department of Public Health and Social Services tested 20 individuals for COVID-19 and 17 tested negative. The results received Wednesday night confirm three additional positive cases. Guam DPHSS said all three new cases remain in isolation.

Guam has already performed a total of 65 tests from March 12, 2020, through March 18, 2020. To date, a total of eight cases have tested positive and 57 cases have tested negative for COVID-19.

As part of the GovGuam’s coordinated COVID-19 response, DPHSS continues to trace back the recent contacts of the eight positive COVID-19 cases identified this week. This “contact tracing” investigation includes identifying close contacts of the individuals. That may include family members and co-workers who will be quarantined and actively monitored by DPHSS for 14 days after their last contact with the case.

Additionally, GovGuam has instituted COVID-19 Mandatory Quarantine Protocol measures for all incoming travelers from the Philippines. Any and all travelers arriving without these credentials will be subject to mandatory quarantine.

Temporary isolation centers identified on Saipan

On Saipan, the CNMI COVID-19 Task Force has arranged for temporary isolation facilities through the business community. A press release from the Office of Governor said this was done to not compromise essential Commonwealth Health Center operations and to protect the limited resources of the Commonwealth Health Care Corp.

The press release also said that the Commonwealth Health Care Corp. has identified one person as a surveillance case and the person and his/her household members are now being monitored. The statement quickly pointed out that there is still no positive COVID-19 case in the CNMI and the patient is being monitored as a precautionary measure to protect the CNMI.

The statement said that the patient doesn’t necessarily meet the COVID-19 person under investigation criteria as defined by Guam Health Laboratory, which is the current testing location for potential COVID-19 cases in the CNMI, but a clinician has judged that the patient should be tested.

In addition, the patients don’t meet the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention of a COVID-19 PUI (person under investigation).

In an effort to scale down community transmission, CHCC, following CDC guidelines and CNMI legal authorities granted to CHCC, has decided to isolate this surveillance case and identify household members.

According to the CHCC statement, this decision was made in the best interest of protecting the island community.

COVID-19 Task Force and CHCC would like to remind the community to please respect these individuals as they remain quarantined at the Century Hotel in Garapan, where it will be a temporary isolation facility.

This does not mean that the CNMI has a confirmed case. Further information will be provided when it is available.

United Airlines has also taken precautionary measures in order to prevent an outbreak in the CNMI. Instead of having twice a day flights from Guam to Saipan for seven days, it has been reduced to four weekly flights starting March 22 to May. 3.

In a statement from United, it said, “United asks for your understanding of both the challenges we are facing and the difficult decisions we need to make to ensure that United can endure the current challenges and resume our normal service levels when passengers confidence and demand return.”