Secretary of Health Francisco Duque iii of Philippines

TV - Friday, January 9MANILA, Philippines - The government is on heightened alert to ensure the country remains free from avian influenza (AI), Health Secretary Francisco Duque III said Thursday.

Health Secretary Francisco Duque III said on Monday the melamine scare in milk and milk-based products barely affects the Philippines after releasing two consecutive negative results on milk sample products.

Health Secretary Francisco Duque III said the program, participated in by government agencies, private clinics and hospitals, aimed to make the Philippines the new hub of wellness and medical care in Asia.

Filipino doctors would be barred from migrating and working abroad to avert a possible shortage of medical practitioners, if Health Secretary Francisco Duque III had his way.

Philippine Health Secretary Francisco Duque III said the two farms in northern Bulacan and Pangasinan provinces, which have nearly 10000 pigs, are under quarantine.

Region, Region 4A, and the Cordillera region are severely affected.

Duque III is currently the President and Chief Executive Officer of the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation or PhilHealth.

Francisco Duque III said that the mosquito-borne disease is still a problem because the National Capital Region, Region 4A, and the Cordillera region are severely affected.

Philippine Health Secretary Francisco Duque III said the country's medical system is in crisis as more than 80 percent of the Filipino health care professionals have gone abroad to find jobs with better pays, the national newspaper the Philippine Star reported Monday.

For the past two months, Health Secretary Francisco Duque III has been very busy with the Iwas Paputok campaign.

Health Secretary Francisco Duque III said Jerald and Renato were among the 869 people who suffered firecracker-related injuries as 2007 drew to a close.