The province of Antique has loosened up its coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) restrictions after it was reclassified under Alert Level 2 from its previous higher status.

Provincial Inter-Agency Task Force on coronavirus disease 2019 (IATF Covid-19) Executive Committee member Cherrylyn Quanico said the province is giving its people some leeway with the new classification.

“During our IATF Covid-19 executive committee meeting yesterday (February 15), the restaurants and resorts are now allowed to have 70 percent of their outdoor seating capacity,” she said in an interview on Wednesday.

Quanico added that restaurants and resorts were only allowed 50 percent of their capacity under Alert Level 3.

The new guidelines are contained in Executive Order 008 signed by Acting Governor Edgar Denosta implementing the Alert Level System 2 for Covid-19 response in the province effective Wednesday.

Returning residents, instead of the negative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) test, are required to present their Covid-19 vaccination cards.

“The returning residents have still to be fully vaccinated so that they could only present their vaccination cards and not their negative RT-PCR,” said Quanico, who is in charge of the returning residents in the province.

The requirement was already lifted effective Feb. 3 upon the request of the returning residents.

Many returning residents could not afford to pay for the RT-PCR test that costs as much as PHP5,000, Quanico said. (PNA)