He said as soon as CPA became aware of the novel coronavirus, it immediately started meeting with the Commonwealth Healthcare Corporation, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the Transportation Security Administration, and other stakeholders to formulate a standard operating procedure for screening passengers arriving at the airport.
He said, in addition to the quarantine space that has been designated at the airport for CHCC, there is a new place designated for CHCC near where passengers walk through CBP.
Mendiola added, “I think what [CHCC] is doing right is pretty much visual at this time. They do not have a thermal scanner.”
But CPA is finalizing the purchase of a thermal scanner for the airport, Mendiola said.
Lawmakers asked Mendiola which agency should responsible for the purchase: CPA or CNMI Homeland Security and Emergency Management?
Mendiola said the CPA board did not want to “get into the issue of who is going to pay for it,” noting that on Guam, the Antonio B. Won Pat International Airport and the Guam Visitors Bureau were debating who should pay for the airport’s new thermal scanner.
For his part, CPA staff attorney Joe Hallahan informed lawmakers that “with the rise in the number of hits in South Korea, the board has decided that an emergency procurement would be necessary.”
When asked how much the thermal scanner would cost, Hallahan stated that it could be around $25,000 to $30,000.
Mendiola said CPA is awaiting final notification from the supplier in regards to the price, shipping details, and delivery time.
“We are trying to get [the thermal scanner] as soon as possible. We are probably going to do a wire transfer payment so we can ship it out as soon as possible. As of now, we do not know how long it will take to arrive. We are awaiting final details from the supplier,” Mendiola added.
Some lawmakers said perhaps after the procurement, CPA could seek reimbursement from Homeland Security.
