MANILA, Philippines — The Office of the Vice President will provide free shuttle service to health workers and other frontliners as the whole island of Luzon is under “enhanced community quarantine” amid the 2019 coronavirus disease (COVID-19) threat.

In a twitter post, Vice President Leni Robredo said her office will start giving the shuttle services on Wednesday, March 18. Further details will later be announced.

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“Starting tomorrow, the Office of VP Leni Robredo will provide free shuttle services for health workers and other frontliners. Routes, schedule, and other details to be announced later,” she wrote in a post on Tuesday.

On Monday, President Rodrigo Duterte placed Luzon under enhanced community quarantine where mass public transportation was suspended.

READ: Mass transport suspended all over Luzon under enhanced quarantine

The quarantine took effect midnight of March 17 and will expire on midnight of April 13.

Under an enhanced community quarantine, “strict home quarantine shall be implemented in all households; transportation shall be suspended; provision for food and essential services shall be regulated; and heightened presence of uniformed personnel to enforce quarantine procedures will be implemented.”

READ: Luzon now under ‘enhanced community quarantine’ – Palace

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Health officials have so far recorded 142 confirmed cases of COVID-19, with 12 deaths. To date, three individuals have recovered from the disease.

The country has been placed under state of public health emergency due to the virus threat.

The Department of Health (DOH) also hoisted a Code Red Sublevel 2, which is raised when evidence of community transmission and prevalence of cases beyond what the government can address.

Most people who have COVID-19 can recover as its symptoms are mild, such as fever and cough. But the illness can be more serious for others, possibly leading to pneumonia, especially older adults and those with existing health problems.

The World Health Organization declared the disease as a global pandemic after it killed nearly 5,000 people and infected 110,000 others worldwide.

The International Committee on Taxonomy of Viruses named the novel coronavirus as SARS-CoV-2.

The virus causes mild symptoms such as fever and cough for most people but can cause serious illness such as pneumonia for others, especially older adults and people with existing health problems.

Coronavirus is a family of viruses, which surfaces have a crown-like appearance. The viruses are named for the spikes on their surfaces.

For more news about the novel coronavirus click here.

What you need to know about Coronavirus.

For more information on COVID-19, call the DOH Hotline: (02) 86517800 local 1149/1150.

The Inquirer Foundation supports our healthcare frontliners and is still accepting cash donations to be deposited at Banco de Oro (BDO) current account #007960018860 or donate through PayMaya using this link .

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