OWWA: Over 650K OFWs repatriated amid pandemic

By JAMIL SANTOS, GMA News The Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) on Thursday reported that a total of 654,546 overseas Filipino workers have already returned home amid the global threat of the Delta coronavirus variant. Interviewed at the Laging Handa briefing, OWWA Administrator Hans Leo Cacdac said the general rule for returning OFWs is for them to stay in hotel quarantine facilities for 10 days. But OFWs who came from travel-restricted countries will still undergo a 14-day quarantine. Travel-restricted countries include the UAE, Oman, Malaysia, Indonesia, India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, and Nepal. Another exception is if an individual is fully vaccinated and they come from the 36 countries under the 'green list' of the IATF. They will be under quarantine for seven days, Cacdac said in Filipino. Those quarantined for 10 days will undergo swab test on the seventh day, and will be allowed to leave the isolation facility upon being tested negative on the 10th day. Those under the seven-day quarantine period will undergo RT-PCR test on the fifth day and will be allowed to leave the facility on the seventh day if they get negative result for coronavirus. —LBG, GMA News

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