New COVID-19 cases in NCR increased by 10% —OCTA

The daily average of new COVID-19 cases in the National Capital Region (NCR) increased by 10%, independent monitoring group OCTA Research said Tuesday.

According to OCTA Research fellow Dr. Guido David, the daily average of new cases increased from 78 recorded in the May 24 to 30 period to 86 in the May 31 to June 6 period, based on their analysis of data from the Department of Health (DOH).

David also said NCR’s reproduction number rose to 1.24 from 1.08.

The reproduction number refers to the number of people infected by one case. A reproduction number that is below 1 indicates that the transmission of the virus is slowing down.

“NCR remained at low risk amidst the uptick in new cases but the public is advised to not be complacent with health protocols,” David said in a tweet.

Meanwhile, the one-week average daily attack rate also increased from 0.55 to 0.61. However, David noted that it remained less than one.

ADAR pertains to the incidence showing the average number of new cases in a period per 100,000 people.

Data also showed that the positivity rate increased from 1.5% to 1.6% over an average of 9,430 tests per day, still meeting the benchmark of the World Health Organization.

The positivity rate refers to the percentage of people who were found positive for COVID-19 among the total number of individuals tested.

On the other hand, hospital care utilization — which refers to the occupancy of isolation, ward, and intensive care unit beds, as well as the utilization of mechanical ventilators — decreased from 23% to 21%.

The DOH said the Philippines has recorded 3,691,724 confirmed COVID-19 cases as of Monday, of which 2,459 remain active while 60,456 have died. —Joahna Lei Casilao/KG, GMA News