De Lima: DOH’s mass recovery adjustment a ‘mass deception’

Senator Leila de Lima on Saturday branded the re-tagging of mild and asymptomatic cases of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) a “mass deception” by the Department of Health (DOH).

Last Thursday, the DOH reported a staggering 38,075 new recoveries, 37,166 of which were re-tagged cases while 909 were newly reported by regional and epidemiological surveillance units for July 30. 

“This is a blatant and monstrous manipulation of data! Hindi iyan ‘mass recovery,’ ‘yan ang mass deception—mas maramihang pandurugas,” De Lima said in a statement.

“Isa ang DOH sa mga ahensya ng pamahalaan na pinagagana ng siyensya pero ngayon ay nag-uulat ng  datos na salat sa siyensya dahil sa dalawang ito. Aba'y imbes na magfocus, ang ginagawa'y hokus-pokus,” she added.

Senators Joel Villanueva and Risa Hontiveros earlier slammed the  DOH's adjustment, with Villanueva saying that it actually shows there's a problem with the department's data interpretation.

Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire defended the re-tagging of cases, saying the department used criteria backed by scientific evidence.

The DOH has also revised its protocols to omit the requirement of a negative swab test in order for a COVID-19 patient to be declared a recovery, noting that the resolution of symptoms was enough. 

The number of COVID-19 cases in the Philippines reached six figures as of Sunday afternoon, with 103,185 confirmed cases. — Julia Mari Ornedo/BM, GMA News