Philippines’ COVID-19 tally hits 635,698 with 61,733 active cases

The Philippines’ tally of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) cases rose to 635,698 on Wednesday after the Department of Health (DOH) reported 4,387 new infections as six laboratories failed to submit data on time.

This marks the sixth consecutive day where more than 4,000 daily cases were reported.

Meanwhile, the total active cases in the country continue to climb to another record-high of 61,733 cases this year.

Of this, 93 percent are mild, 3.8 percent are asymptomatic, 1.3 percent are severe, and 1.2 percent are in critical condition.

The Health Department also announced that 374 more patients have recovered from the illness, bringing the total to 561,099.

Eighteen new fatalities also brought the death toll to 12,866.

A total of nine duplicate cases were removed from the total case count while five cases that were previously tagged as recovered were reclassified as deaths.

Data from the DOH also showed that 53 percent of the country’s intensive care unit beds are available.

Meanwhile, 72 percent of the mechanical ventilators are ready for use.

A total of 215,997 individuals have been vaccinated against COVID-19 as of March 15, two weeks since the Philippines launched its vaccination program.

Due to the slow pace of the country’s economic recovery, Moody’s analytics said the Philippines is not likely to achieve herd immunity against COVID-19 until 2023.—LDF, GMA News