THE number of coronavirus disease (Covid-19) cases in the Philippines continues to increase, with the Department of Health (DOH) recording almost 4,000 additional coronavirus-positive individuals Saturday, August 29.
The DOH, in its latest bulletin, said 3,637 new Covid-19 cases have been recorded, bringing the total number of coronavirus infections in the country to 213,131.
Of the new cases, majority came from the National Capital Region (NCR) with 2,030. Also seeing high number of cases are Laguna (217), Rizal (155), Cavite (142), and Batangas (113).
The DOH also reported that there were 94 new mortalities. This means that the country's death toll is now at 3,419.
Majority of the new deaths were recorded in NCR with 54. Other fatalities were from Calabarzon (16), Central Luzon (14), Western Visayas (4), Zamboanga Peninsula (3), Central Visayas (1), ROF (1) and one uncategorized death.
As to recoveries, the health department said 655 more patients have recovered from the disease. This brought the number of Covid-19 survivors to 135,101.
DOH Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire, in a public briefing Saturday, August 29, said the Covid-19 cases in the country “did not go up,” but remain "average" in the last two weeks.
“So these past weeks po nakikita natin na may naobserbahan tayo na hindi naman po siya talaga tumaas pa ng husto although nandoon pa rin po tayo doon sa average natin per week na nangyayari sa mga kaso. Titingnan po natin sa mga darating na araw kung ito ay mapapababa natin, dahil po sa mga strategies na ating ipinapatupad,” Vergeire said.
She admitted that the DOH did not expect to see lower numbers of coronavirus infections during the two-week implementation of the modified enhanced community quarantine (MECQ) in Metro Manila and its nearby areas.
“Gusto ko lang pong ipaliwanag, noon pong tayo ay nagkaroon ng MECQ, we did not expect that we can bring down the cases immediately. That is long term,” she said.
Vergeire said the DOH has recalibrated its Coordinated Operations to Defeat Epidemic (Code) strategy in the last two weeks.
Code is the health department's protocol that will begin active case finding through close coordination between DOH representatives and communities across the country.
“Ang atin pong ginawa during this MECQ stage, recalibrate our strategy at atin pong ipinapatupad ngayon iyan na mga Code strategy, iyon pong ating One Hospital command, iyong Oplan Kalinga,” she said.
Vergeire called on the public to remain vigilant as the virus continues to infect individuals all over the world.
“Tayo po lahat ay may responsibilidad dito sa response na ito. Sana po isapuso at isa-isip po natin ang mga kailangan nating gawin. Let us be responsible, not just for ourselves, but for our family and the community,” she said.
Worldwide, there have been 24,299,923 confirmed cases of Covid-19, with 827,730 deaths, as of August 28, according to the World Health Organization. (HDT/Jove Moya/SunStar Philippines)