Joint Administrative Order for Team Practices' Resumption Still Subject for Changes

Last month, a joint administrative order coming from the Department of Health (DOH), Games and Amusement Board (GAB), and the Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) was released that served as a go-signal for teams in sports leagues such as the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) and the Philippine SuperLiga (PSL) to resume team practices. The ball was already rolling towards the resumption of practices until Metro Manila was placed under modified enhanced community quarantine (MECQ) August 1 which put things on hold due to the unstoppable fast rise in the number of 2019 Novel Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) cases in the country. 

And now that the National Capital Region (NCR) was among the regions in the country that have been placed under general community quarantine (GCQ), the three government agencies reminded athletes who are under the jurisdiction of both GAB and the PSC that the existing order to resume team practices is still subject for changes.

In a joint statement issued last night, DOH, GAB, and PSC said that they will continuously update the said joint administrative order to resume practices and other applicable issuances "based on emerging evidence and best practices". The joint statement also added that athletes who fall under the jurisdiction of GAB and PSC will be allowed to resume practices as long as they do so in areas that are GCQ-placed areas. In the same statement, the three government agencies also added that club teams that are not under the jurisdiction of GAB can be allowed to hold team practices too. 

The two government bodies along with the health department also encourage professional leagues to continue to work on developing health and safety protocols and guidelines for their resumption of training among other league activities while reiterating that the national government is also open to provide technical assistance to sports associations in reviewing their respective health and safety protocols and guidelines in hopes of ensuring the safety of all concerned individuals during the pandemic. 

Photo is from ESPN