Philippines’ COVID-19 cases exceed 316,000 with 2,611 new infections

The number of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) cases in the Philippines rose to 316,678 on Friday with 2,611 new infections, marking the fourth consecutive day where less than 3,000 new cases were reported.

According to the Department of Health (DOH), most of the new cases still came from the National Capital Region with 1,084, followed by Cavite with 202, Iloilo with 182, Bulacan with 163, and Rizal with 132.

Eighty-two percent or 2,150 of the newly reported cases acquired the virus in the past 14 days. A total of 12 cases were also removed from the total case count.

The DOH also announced that 416 more patients have also recovered from the illness, bringing the total to 254,617, while 56 new fatalities brought the death toll to 5,616.

Among the new deaths, 43 occurred in  September, six In August, five in July, one in May, and one in April.

There are also 56,445 active cases still undergoing treatment or quarantine. Of this, 87 percent are mild, 8.8 percent are asymptomatic, 1.3 percent are severe, and 2.9 percent are in critical condition.

At present, the country has 138 licensed laboratories that have tested over 3.5 million individuals.

Meanwhile, 47 percent of the country’s intensive care unit beds for COVID-19 patients are occupied while 24 percent of the mechanical ventilators are in use.

Malacañang earlier said that it is not ruling out the possibility that Metro Manila may shift to a modified general community quarantine in November should the country’s COVID-19 cases continue to decline.—LDF, GMA News