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PGIA will open August 15

HighlightsPGIA will open August 15

(Continued from the Friday edition of June 26, 2020)

BELIZE CITY, Thurs. June, 25, 2020– Health Ministry CEO Dr. George Gough said that we are 90 percent prepared for COVID-19, adding that “This country has met its threshold for a catastrophic wave. But I would like to say that we are quite prepared when it comes to the personal protection kits, when it comes to the minimum infrastructure.”

Dr. Gough said that we have managed to create permanent COVID clinics. “When it comes to the reopening of the industry, I would like to think that it’s going to be a phased approach that colleagues have elaborated quite well. I would like to think that it would be in such a manner that we are able to sustain it,” he said.

Dr. Gough informed that we have been able to procure more than 5,000 anti-gen tests.

“I have also spoken to some anti-gen test providers who can provide us with tests in the quantity of more than 5,000 per month. And we have also spoken with suppliers who can provide us with anti-body IDG-IDM combination tests, which we are looking for. The Government of Taiwan has been very gracious to us, and they have donated 5,000 IGG-IDM tests. We have gotten two PCI machines from them, which brings 750 kits and 8 individual kits. I have secured the contact for us to procure more of those cassettes.”

Dr. Gough explained that validation is possible and that we all know that rapid test has its false negative. We all know that we can use it to validate as best as we can.

Dr. Gough said that the adequate testing structures are being constructed at the PGIA.

“I think that we are being extremely responsible in the way we are embarking on this. I want to reiterate that there is going to be a lot of work in the next 5 weeks. Things are quite fluid. When we start this work, it doesn’t mean that it is going to finish the way we are discussing today. “

In response to a question from the media, Prime Minister Barrow explained that the effort to reopen the PGIA has been the work of inter-agencies, the Ministry of Health, the Immigration Department, the Airport Authority, and Customs Department; all are involved with respect to how the protocols are implemented. It is, as we all stressed in our initial presentations, a work in progress,” Barrow said.

“Reopening is not until the 15th August, so we have time for the inevitable fine-tuning to be worked out and thereafter, implemented, he said.”

CEO Judith Alpuche explained that it’s not like we are starting from scratch. All those personnel at the airport have been managing those repatriation flights and have dealt with a case of COVID before, so the protocols have evolved and there is infrastructure being put in place to heighten protection and security. A lot of training has already been done. The Ministry of Health has been interacting with and training those quarantine hotels. So there is a foundation there already with the personnel that have already been trained, he said.

PM Barrow explained that the airlines can begin their marketing. He said that Copa and Southwest have indicated that they are not going to be ready until next year.

In addition, American Airlines, which operates on a roatation basis, indicated that since the airport will not be ready for opening on July 1, they would not be able to come until August 18.

United indicated that they would come whenever we are ready, and they continue to come on those charter reparation flights; Delta will come whenever we are ready. The August 15 reopening should see the return of Delta, United and American, Barrow said.

One question that was asked was the security of the quarantine stations.

Barrow replied that we have had some problems with the security of quarantine stations, but in respect to the tourists, he said that that is a different situation.

Once we are able to open the PGIA, the controlled reparation of Belizeans stops, and that could morphed into a kind of open floodgate scenario.

Barrow explained that after the airport opens, Belizeans too, will be asked to bring back a negative PCR test that is not older than 72 hours.

The testing regime for returning Belizeans will be different from that of the international visitors, however. Returning Belizeans will not be tested with the anti-gen, anti-body rapid test, because those are not as reliable as the PCR tests. All Belizeans will therefore be tested by the PCR test.

Now there is a difference between the standard PCR test that we use in country from the start, Dr. Gough indicated that we now have two additional forms of PCR tests that can be done. One is based on gene expert platform machines; the gene expert tests traditionally have been used for the testing of malaria and HIV, so we have the ability to do the gene expert test which is already in country. That will be part of the testing mix at the PGIA. But that can’t be frontline tests that we will use on Belizeans. Belizeans will be tested with the Taiwanese tests. That is the one that has a turnaround time of 85 minutes. The anti-gen and anti-body rapid test is not as reliable as the PCR rapid test, he said.

Barrow said that returning Belizeans will not have to go into quarantine, except if they get off the plane and are tested positive at the airport.

“We hope the numbers of returning Belizeans who test positive will be very few,” he said.

The Prime Minister went on to explain that this is not going to be smooth, but we’ve waited for as long as we have, because we would like to get it right as much as possible.

Barrow stressed that this thing is going to be with us for years, but we cannot wait forever. But we have to concede that it is not going to be completely free of difficulties.

“But we cannot keep tourism shut down any longer; as a society, we must do what we must do,” Barrow emphasized.

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