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An inmate at the New Bilibid Prisons in Muntinlupa City has tested positive for the coronavirus, the Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) announced today in a statement.
The BuCor said that the inmate was first brought to Bilibid’s hospital on April 17 and transferred on the same day to the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine (RITM) where he remains confined to this day.
Read: 18 inmates, 1 staff positive for coronavirus in Mandaluyong City women’s prison
“As a precautionary measure, contact tracing was started on the day (Friday, 17 April 2020) he was admitted at the RITM. As a result, 40 PDLs [persons deprived of liberty] were put in isolated areas on (18 April 2020). Medical staff who attended to the PDL patient are also considered as suspects and are now under quarantine,” the BuCor said.
After it was confirmed that the first patient was positive of the coronavirus, the 40 PDLs were transferred to a bigger quarantine facility, “where they will be monitored more effectively while waiting to be tested for Covid-19 virus,” the BuCor said.
“Meanwhile, BuCor medical staff are now providing focused medical care to all suspect PDLs and to those found positive,” it added.
Before the BuCor’s announcement, at least 18 prisoners at the Correctional Institution for Women in Mandaluyong City were found positive for the coronavirus. Over at Quezon City Jail, at least 18 prisoners have also tested positive for the virus. In Cebu City Jail, one prisoner has died of COVID-19, prompting authorities to start testing all detainees. As of yesterday, at least 123 prisoners have tested positive.
Early this month, a group of political prisoners petitioned the Supreme Court to ask for their temporary liberty, saying that the country’s crowded jails make it likely for them to become infected with the coronavirus.
