DOH sees COVID-19 case uptick in Regions 2, 7, Caraga

The Department of Health (DOH) on Thursday noted an uptick in cases of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in Cagayan Valley, Central Visayas, and Caraga.

DOH Epidemiology Bureau Director Alethea De Guzman said the three regions were among those that logged a positive growth in cases in the past two weeks as compared to the previous three to four weeks.

In Region 2, an increase in cases was observed in Cagayan, Isabela, and Santiago City.

“Kung saan meron pong pagtaas ng kaso… do’n din tayo nakakakita ng pagtaas ng kanilang healthcare utilization,” De Guzman said in a virtual briefing.

“This is something the regional office is working to ensure na mapataas ‘yung dedicated beds to accommodate this case increase,” she added.

In Region 7, De Guzman said most areas showed an uptick in infections, with a “steep” rise in Cebu province and the cities of Cebu, Lapu-Lapu, and Mandaue.

“Even though we’re seeing case increase in a number of areas in Cebu City… it’s not translating to high or critical risk na healthcare utilization so we’re seeing a good number of dedicated beds,” she said.

Experts from the OCTA Research group earlier sounded the alarm on a surge in cases in Cebu province. 

In Caraga, all areas except Agusan del Norte and Dinagat Islands reported case increases.

“What’s good with Caraga is even though it’s showing increases in its cases, hindi po na-sa-saturate or napupuno ang kanyang facilities. It has maintained its healthcare utilization for all areas under ‘safe’ [category],” De Guzman said.

Active cases plateauing

Meanwhile, the DOH said it was seeing a plateau in the number of active cases.

“Kung napapansin niyo, naglalaro na lamang siya from 4% to at most 6%,” De Guzman said. “Our severe and critical cases among these active cases have actually briefly decreased.”

De Guzman also said the recovery rate has held steady.

The case fatality rate, however, rose to 2.11% due to delayed reporting.

“Bakit tumataas? Ito nga po ‘yung mga dating na-re-report natin na mga deaths kaya lang po hindi po sila validated… Hindi po naibigay sa’min ano ‘yung araw o date na namatay sila, o di kaya ang cause of death,” the health official said.

The number of average deaths per day fell to six during February 1 to 10 from a high of 66 in August 2020.

The Philippines has logged 543,282 cases with 500,335 recoveries and 11,469 deaths as of Thursday afternoon. — BM, GMA News