I LEFT New York on May 7 just as masks were no longer required for the fully vaccinated outdoors and indoors and just before the lifting of all restrictions on May 17. I arrived in Manila on May 8 just in time to be the first group covered by the - with no lead time or warning -increase in facility quarantine from 7 to 10 days. That was imposed and implemented overnight. Literally, what a difference a day made. When I took off, policy was seven days and when I landed 18 hours later, welcome to your new 10-day facility quarantine. It would have been nice to have some lead time so one could decide whether to come back or not and change arrangements if returning. That was an inconvenience for me, but it really could be very difficult and costly for many others. I understand the urgency and need but surely, there are subtler ways to implement without sacrificing safety and being cruel to those who are constrained by time or funds. I timed my last trip to Hong Kong to arrive in advance of changes in the quarantine protocol though it meant literally spending Christmas Eve in quarantine. That was the price I willingly and knowingly paid to comply with the quarantine period before it was increased. Same thing in timing when I returned to Manila at the end of January. Though, I suppose a year after Covid, I do not expect decision-making practices here to change.

It seems Covid and the government's response reminds me of the great saying, "The more things change, the more they stay the same." We had had over a year of quarantines of many variations with essentially the same thing - various levels of quarantine or lockdown, and no major changes in restrictions except to add face shields. It is the stick and no carrot. It is just how hard or varied the stick or in some cases the hammer is. I do not question the necessity of the stick; I just ask what about the carrot? More specifically, I understand the need for coercion and enforcement but where is the incentive and reward aspect to dealing with the now 15 months and yet-to-end quarantine?

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