Philippines records 9,475 new COVID-19 infections; total now at 721,892

The Philippines on Sunday registered 9,475 new COVID-19 infections, raising the total tally to 721,892, as seven laboratories failed to submit data on time.

This marks the third straight day when more than 9,000 new infections were reported.

The Department of Health said this brought the total active cases in the country to 105,568, of which 95.5% were mild, 2.5% were asymptomatic, 0.7% were critical, and 0.8% were in severe condition.

Meanwhile, the total number of recoveries also rose to 603,154 after 22,000 more patients recovered from the respiratory illness. This is the highest reported number of recoveries since March 21 when 15,288 individuals overcame the disease.

The death toll climbed to 13,170 with 11 new fatalities.

The DOH said 25 duplicates were removed from the total case count, while four cases previously tagged as recoveries were reclassified as deaths after final validation.

Data from the DOH showed that 72% of the country’s intensive care unit beds were utilized, while 51% of the mechanical ventilators were also utilized.

On Saturday, the government announced that Metro Manila, Bulacan, Rizal, Cavite, and Laguna would be placed under an enhanced community quarantine from March 29 to April 4 in a bid to address the surging COVID-19 cases.

Presidential spokesperson Harry Roque said all mass gatherings, including religious gatherings, would be prohibited.

Minors, senior citizens, pregnant women, and those with immunodeficiency and co-morbidities would not be allowed to leave their households.

The curfew was also extended from 6 p.m. to 5 a.m.

The OCTA Research group earlier projected 740,000 COVID-19 infections by the end of March. — DVM, GMA News