COVID-19 cases in Calabarzon breach 1,000-mark

SAN PEDRO CITY –– The number of coronavirus disease patients in Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal, and Quezon (Calabarzon) has reached over a thousand, the Department of Health (DOH) said on Thursday.

Eduardo Janairo, DOH regional director, said 1,039 people had contracted the virus based on their records as of May 6.

This was after 54 new cases were recorded in the region over the last two days.

Of this number, 121 patients have died, while 251 have recovered from the disease.

The number of confirmed cases continued to rise despite the absence of a massive testing and a government-accredited laboratory supposedly to fast-track virus detection in the region.

Applications for a DOH accreditation to become a sub-national testing laboratory by the De La Salle University (DLSU) in Dasmariñas City, Cavite, and the University of the Philippines Los Baños in Laguna are still pending.

Cavite Governor Jonvic Remulla, Thursday, said that while
the DLSU laboratory has already been processing specimen samples from people suspected to have contracted the disease, the university laboratory still has to complete a “proficiency test,” the final step in the accreditation process, to be acknowledged by the DOH.

Rizal, with 334, has the highest number of cases, with 115 traced to Antipolo City alone.

Laguna has 315 cases, while Cavite has 203.

In Batangas, 115 people have contracted the disease. Quezon has 72.

The entire region was placed under extended quarantine until May 15 after being identified as a high risk-area for an outbreak.

LZB