DOH: Rise in COVID-19 cases ‘gradual’; prevailing health system coping

MANILA, Philippines — The increase in confirmed COVID-19 cases is only “gradual” and can still be handled by the country’s current health system, the Department of Health (DOH) said Wednesday.

“Bagamat tumataas ang mga kaso sa ating bansa, ang pagtaas naman nito ay gradual at hindi biglaan,” Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire explained in a televised press briefing, where she presented a graph showing the rising number of COVID-19 cases in the Philippines.

(Although the COVID-19 cases in the country are increasing, the increase is gradual and not sudden.)

“Ang ibigsabihin po nito ay nakakayanan ng ating current health system ang pagtaas ng mga kaso,” she added.

(This means that our current health system can cope with the rise of confirmed cases.)

Vergeire issued the statement a day after the country logged a record-high 1,150 new coronavirus infections on Tuesday, June 23.

On Wednesday afternoon, the new cases dropped to 470, pushing the nationwide tally to 32,295.

While the national daily cases have “stabilized,” Vergeire said they expect the number of cases to continue to increase as the country slowly opens up its economy and progressively loosens lockdown measures.

Metro Manila still has the most number of COVID-19 cases in the country, but the DOH listed six areas in the Visayas, including Cebu City, as among the “emerging hotspots” for coronavirus infection.

Less restrictive coronavirus lockdowns have been imposed in the majority of areas in the country except for Cebu City, which is placed under the stringent enhanced community quarantine (ECQ), and neighboring Talisay City, which is now under modified ECQ due to their high transmission rate, and the increasing demand for critical care.

KGA