DOH welcomes Supreme Court ruling on COVID-19 regulations

MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Health (DOH) has welcomed the Supreme Court (SC) ruling that dismissed petitions challenging the constitutionality of COVID-19 regulations imposed by different government agencies as well as local government units.

“The Department of Health, as the leading agency overseeing the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Diseases, takes this opportunity to reaffirm that all regulations and policies implemented during the pandemic were enacted with the utmost consideration for the common good,” the DOH said in a statement.

The health agency added, “Presently, the DOH vigorously emphasizes the critical imperative of vaccination and booster doses, as they remain our foremost line of defense against the COVID-19 virus.”

Further, the DOH reiterated, “Scientific evidence unequivocally demonstrates that vaccines, coupled with the meticulous implementation of multiple layers of protection, have played an instrumental role in guiding our successful journey towards overcoming the challenges posed by the pandemic.”

“By building a resilient barrier of immunity, we have substantially bolstered our collective resilience against the virus, paving the way for a triumphant transition towards a post-pandemic era,” it added.

The DOH said they are grateful for the favorable ruling rendered by the high court.

The DOH likewise said that its Office for Legal Affairs will soon issue a comprehensive statement once they receive a copy of the SC ruling.

The SC on July 11 dismissed separate petitions filed by former presidential candidate Dr. Jose Montemayor Jr., civic groups and a group of passengers’ and riders’ advocates in February and May 2022.

The petitioners alleged that the various policies violated their right to due process, impaired their right to travel and infringed upon the equal protection clause because they apply only to those who do not have private vehicles and discriminated against the unvaccinated.

However, the SC said the petitions were dismissible for “violating the doctrine of hierarchy of courts as the resolution of the issues raised therein required the determination and adjudication of extremely technical and scientific facts that necessitates the conduct of a full-blown proceeding before a court of first instance.”