Philippines registers 543 new COVID-19 cases; active tally at 13K

The Philippines posted 543 additional COVID-19 infections on Monday, increasing the nation's total tally to 2,835,154.

This marked the thirteenth straight day wherein less than 1,000 fresh cases were logged.

In a case bulletin, the Department of Health (DOH) reported that active infections decreased to 13,548.

Total count of deaths due to COVID-19 rose to 49,499, with 113 new deaths, DOH data also showed.

Regarding this data, the department said only 14 new deaths occurred in December 2021 while 21% were reported in November 2021.

"This issue is currently being coordinated with the Epidemiology and Surveillance Units to ensure information is up to date," it also said.

The number of patients who recovered from the severe respiratory disease rose to 2,772,107, including 830 new ones.

Also, only 1.7% of the 32,634 individuals tested were positive COVID-19 results on December 4.

In a separate statement, DOH noted that 12 duplicates, including 10 recoveries, were removed while 152 cases that turned out to be negative were also deleted from the total caseload.

On the other hand, 102 recoveries were redesignated as deaths after final validation.

The DOH said two laboratories were not operational on December 4, while five laboratories were not able to submit their data. The seven non-reporting labs contribute 0.1% of samples tested and 0.4% of positive individuals.

The latest data from the DOH also showed that 26% of the country’s intensive care unit beds are occupied, while 14% of the mechanical ventilators are being used.

In the metropolis, 29% of the ICU beds are utilized, while 17% of the ventilators are in use.—LDF, GMA News