DOH to validate 6,800 COVID-19 test results in the coming days — Vergeire

Some 6,800 COVID-19 test results have yet to be validated by the Department of Health (DOH), an official said Monday, even as the agency vowed to speed up the process.

Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire gave the figure amid criticisms on how the DOH is recording the cases.

“Sa ngayon we have around 6,800 pa na kailangan pong i-validate natin, na atin pong pagtatrabahuhan sa mga susunod na araw para po magkaroon na po tayo ng at least approximation between the unique individuals tested and those confirmed positive for COVID-19,” she said in a televised briefing.

She also said that not all 6,800 test results will be added to the confirmed cases, which stood at 18,086 on Sunday.

“Kapag bina-validate natin ang mga kaso, ating tinitingnan baka may duplication, baka may mga erroneous inputs, so babawasin pa rin natin iyan,” she said. “Hindi talaga mo masasabi na ‘pag in-add mo iyan ay iyan iyong magiging total mo na 23,000 plus, mababawasan pa iyan because of validation.”

Vergeire also assured the public that the DOH has been transparent in the reporting of the COVID-19 situation in the country.

“Ang Kagawaran ng Kalusugan ay naging transparent from the very start with our data, nakikita ninyo po lahat po ng aming ginagawa,” she said. “We have an open system, iyong data-drop, kung saan maaaring tingnan ng mga kababayan natin ang aming mga datos.”

The DOH recently started classifying new cases as either "fresh" or "late" cases.

According to the department, COVID-19 test results released to a patient within the past three days counted as “fresh” cases, while results that were released to a patient four days ago or longer as of reporting time were considered “late.”

The department said that it made the change to avoid stoking fears when they report a high number of new COVID-19 cases. However, Vice President Leni Robredo said on Sunday the change may lead to more confusion. — RSJ, GMA News