Philippine COVID-19 infection rate flat; ICU overload risk in Davao, Iloilo –OCTA

The COVID-19 infection rate in the Philippines is on a generally flat trend but intensive care units in Davao and Iloilo are currently at risk of being overloaded, the OCTA Research Group warned over the weekend.

Citing the COVID Act Now metrics, the OCTA Research Group on Sunday said the Philippines has an infection rate of 0.93, indicating that the trend is “generally flat.”

Broken down into smaller units, Metro Manila has a rate of 0.84 which indicates a “downward trend” for new cases. The area is currently under a general community quarantine with some restrictions until July 15, 2021.

A flat trend is also seen in Bacolod with 1.04, while a “slow upward trend” is being recorded in the cities of Cebu with 1.30, Davao with 1.36, and Iloilo with 1.14.

In terms of the positive test rate, the Philippines has a “high” rate of 11%, along with Davao City with 16% and Iloilo City with 19%. “Adequate” rates were seen in Metro Manila with 6% and Cebu City with 7%.

Meanwhile, intensive care unit (ICU) utilization was considered “low” in the Philippines, the National Capital Region (NCR), Cebu City, and Bacolod.

A different scenario was seen in the cities of Davao and Iloilo, with their rates above 85% indicating that the ICUs are "at high risk of being overloaded in case of a COVID-19 surge."

According to the OCTA Research Group, the COVID Act Now uses risk metrics developed with the Harvard Global Health Institute and Harvard Edmond J. Safra Center for Ethics with collaborations from Bloomberg, Apple, and Microsoft, among others.

The Philippines on Sunday reported 5,966 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 to bring the total caseload to 1,436,369. This includes 52,708 active cases; 1,358,512 recoveries; and 25,149 deaths.  — DVM, GMA News