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The Quarantine Policy of the Philippines in Ross Upshur’s Ethical Principles

Received: 25 October 2021     Accepted: 15 November 2021     Published: 23 November 2021
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Abstract

The advent of COVID–19 specifically in the Philippines challenges the country’s readiness in responding to a life-threatening pandemic. The scarcity of vaccines and the limited medical resources of the country directed the government to subject the COVID-19 patients to quarantine health facilities to mitigate the curve of infections. Although practical and efficient, this quarantine measure imposed by the government is not exempt from controversies and issues in terms of possible violation of one’s freedom and liberty. In trying to address the issue, this paper aims to explore the quarantine policy of the country as stated in the Omnibus Guidelines on the Implementation of Community Quarantine (2020 & 2021). The set guidelines was used and re-examined in the light of the Four Ethical Principles of Quarantine by Ross Upshur (2003) such as the harm principle, proportionality, reciprocity, and transparency. In the final analysis, the paper aims justify whether or not the quarantine health measures of the Philippine government in mitigating the increasing number of COVID-19 infections in the country are reasonable and ethically sound and thus forbid any type of discrimination as well as violation to individual’s liberty and freedom.

Published in International Journal of Philosophy (Volume 9, Issue 4)
DOI 10.11648/j.ijp.20210904.14
Page(s) 200-203
Creative Commons

This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.

Copyright

Copyright © The Author(s), 2021. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Ethics, Philippines, COVID-19, Omnibus Guidelines on the Implementation of Community Quarantine, Bayanihan to Heal as One Act, Ross Upshur

References
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[2] Genalyn K. (2020, March 20). Duterte admits Luzon already in ‘lockdown, stresses ‘it will effectively kill COVID-19’. Manila Bulletin, https://news.mb.com.ph/2020/03/20/duterte-admits-luzon-already-inlockdownstresses-it-will-effectively-kill-COVID-19/
[3] Estadilla, L. (2020). Community quarantine in the Philippines. Eubios Journal of Asian and International Bioethics. Vol. 30 (5) pp. 254 – 255. https://philpapers.org/rec/ESTCQI
[4] Spitale, G. (2020). COVID-19 and the ethics of quarantine: A lesson from the Eyam plague. Medicine, Health Care, and Philosophy. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11019-020-09971.
[5] Schotland, S. (2020). A plea to apply principles of quarantine ethics to prisoners and immigration detainees during the COVID-19 crisis. Journal of Law and the Biosciences. 1–11. doi: 10.1093/job/lsaa070.
[6] Gostin, L., Bayer, R., Fairchild, A. (2003). Ethical and Legal Challenges Posed by severe acute respiratory syndrome: Implications for the Control of Severe Infectious Disease Threats. JAMA. DOI: 10.1001. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/14693876/
[7] Sharp, G. (1898). How the Plague was Fought in an English Village in the Seventeenth Century. The British Medical Journal 2 (1975): 1447–1447.
[8] Upshur, Ross. 2003. The Ethics of Quarantine. Virtual Mentor. https://doi.org/10.1001/virtualmentor.2003.5.11.msoc1-0311
[9] Rappler Philippines. COVID-19 pandemic: The latest situation in the Philippines– October 21, 2021. https://www.rappler.com/nation/COVID-19-pandemic-latest-situation-in-the-philippines-october-2021
[10] Haleem A-n et al., Effects of COVID-19 pandemic in daily life, Current Medicine Research and Practice, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cmrp.2020.03.011
[11] Reuters (August 19, 2021). Philippines' Duterte to relax coronavirus curbs in capital region. The Asia Pacific. https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/philippines-duterte-relax-coronavirus-curbs-capital-region-2021-08-19/
[12] Pazzibugan, D. (September 07, 2021). 3 in 4 COVID-19 infections now caused by Delta variant – DOH. Philippine Daily Inquirer. https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1484298/doh-3-in-4-infections-now-caused-by-delta
[13] Department of Health Philippines (DOH). (July 22, 2021). DOH: Government Further Intensifying COVID-19 Response with Local Transmission of Delta Variant.
[14] (2021, May 20). Omnibus Guidelines on Community Quarantine, https://www.officialgazette.gov.ph/downloads/2021/05may/20210520-OMNIBUS-RRD.pdf
[15] Prasetyo, T. T., Castillo, A. M., Salonga L. J., Sia, J. A., & Seneta, J. A.,(2020) Factors affecting perceived effectiveness of COVID-19 prevention measures among Filipinos during Enhanced Community Quarantine in Luzon, Philippines: Integrating Protection Motivation Theory and extended Theory of Planned Behavior. International Journal of Infectious Diseases. http://doi.org/10.1016/.jijid.2020.07.074
[16] (2020, May 28). Metro Manila eases to GCQ on June 1. CNN, Philippines. https://www.cnnphilippines.com/news/2020/5/28/Duterte-Metro-Manila-community-quarantine-MECQ-GCQ-decision.html
[17] Coleman, Michel P. 1986. A Plague Epidemic in Voluntary Quarantine. International Journal of Epidemiology 15 (3): 379–385. https://doi.org/10.1093/ije/15.3.379
[18] Republic Act No. 11469, Otherwise Known as the “Bayanihan to Heal as One Act” https://www.officialgazette.gov.ph/downloads/2020/03mar/20200401-IRR-RA-11469-RRD.pdf
[19] Valeyo, B. M., Ong, R. A. (2020). Policy responses and government science advice for COVID 19 pandemic in the Philippines: January to April 2020. Progress in Disaster Science. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.pdisas.2020.100115.
[20] World Health Organization (WHO). World Health Emergency Dashboard. Homepage. https://COVID19.who.int/
[21] Department of Health Philippines, 2020, 2021. COVID-19 Interagency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases Resolutions. https://doh.gov.ph/COVID-19/IATF-Resolutions. https://COVID19.who.int/region/wpro/country/ph
[22] Pajaron, M. C., Vasquez, G. N. A. (2021): How effective is community quarantine in the Philippines? A quasi-experimental analysis, GLO Discussion Paper, No. 782, Global Labor Organization (GLO), Essen. http://hdl.handle.net/10419/23031
[23] Markovits, D. (2005). Quarantines and Distributive Justice. The Journal of Law, Medicine & Ethics. https://digitalcommons.law.yale.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1416&context=fss_papers&httpsredir=1&referer=
Cite This Article
  • APA Style

    Melchor Labao Cuizon, Randolf Warren Gregorio Talavera Mayo II, Rufo Ramil Hornido Cruz. (2021). The Quarantine Policy of the Philippines in Ross Upshur’s Ethical Principles. International Journal of Philosophy, 9(4), 200-203. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijp.20210904.14

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    ACS Style

    Melchor Labao Cuizon; Randolf Warren Gregorio Talavera Mayo II; Rufo Ramil Hornido Cruz. The Quarantine Policy of the Philippines in Ross Upshur’s Ethical Principles. Int. J. Philos. 2021, 9(4), 200-203. doi: 10.11648/j.ijp.20210904.14

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    AMA Style

    Melchor Labao Cuizon, Randolf Warren Gregorio Talavera Mayo II, Rufo Ramil Hornido Cruz. The Quarantine Policy of the Philippines in Ross Upshur’s Ethical Principles. Int J Philos. 2021;9(4):200-203. doi: 10.11648/j.ijp.20210904.14

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  • @article{10.11648/j.ijp.20210904.14,
      author = {Melchor Labao Cuizon and Randolf Warren Gregorio Talavera Mayo II and Rufo Ramil Hornido Cruz},
      title = {The Quarantine Policy of the Philippines in Ross Upshur’s Ethical Principles},
      journal = {International Journal of Philosophy},
      volume = {9},
      number = {4},
      pages = {200-203},
      doi = {10.11648/j.ijp.20210904.14},
      url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijp.20210904.14},
      eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ijp.20210904.14},
      abstract = {The advent of COVID–19 specifically in the Philippines challenges the country’s readiness in responding to a life-threatening pandemic. The scarcity of vaccines and the limited medical resources of the country directed the government to subject the COVID-19 patients to quarantine health facilities to mitigate the curve of infections. Although practical and efficient, this quarantine measure imposed by the government is not exempt from controversies and issues in terms of possible violation of one’s freedom and liberty. In trying to address the issue, this paper aims to explore the quarantine policy of the country as stated in the Omnibus Guidelines on the Implementation of Community Quarantine (2020 & 2021). The set guidelines was used and re-examined in the light of the Four Ethical Principles of Quarantine by Ross Upshur (2003) such as the harm principle, proportionality, reciprocity, and transparency. In the final analysis, the paper aims justify whether or not the quarantine health measures of the Philippine government in mitigating the increasing number of COVID-19 infections in the country are reasonable and ethically sound and thus forbid any type of discrimination as well as violation to individual’s liberty and freedom.},
     year = {2021}
    }
    

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    AB  - The advent of COVID–19 specifically in the Philippines challenges the country’s readiness in responding to a life-threatening pandemic. The scarcity of vaccines and the limited medical resources of the country directed the government to subject the COVID-19 patients to quarantine health facilities to mitigate the curve of infections. Although practical and efficient, this quarantine measure imposed by the government is not exempt from controversies and issues in terms of possible violation of one’s freedom and liberty. In trying to address the issue, this paper aims to explore the quarantine policy of the country as stated in the Omnibus Guidelines on the Implementation of Community Quarantine (2020 & 2021). The set guidelines was used and re-examined in the light of the Four Ethical Principles of Quarantine by Ross Upshur (2003) such as the harm principle, proportionality, reciprocity, and transparency. In the final analysis, the paper aims justify whether or not the quarantine health measures of the Philippine government in mitigating the increasing number of COVID-19 infections in the country are reasonable and ethically sound and thus forbid any type of discrimination as well as violation to individual’s liberty and freedom.
    VL  - 9
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Author Information
  • Department of Social Sciences, Central Luzon State University, Science City of Munoz, Philippines

  • Department of Social Sciences, Central Luzon State University, Science City of Munoz, Philippines

  • Department of Social Sciences, Central Luzon State University, Science City of Munoz, Philippines

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