CORRECTION: Davao City logs highest case fatality rate as of June 2021

FILE – Despite constant reminders to observe social distancing, commuters in Davao City shove and push elbow-to-elbow to board public transport vehicles during morning rush hours on June 7. —KARLOS MANLUPIG

(This update fixes the source of the report so it’s now the Department of Health, not Octa.)

MANILA, Philippines — Davao City has registered the highest case fatality rate (CFR) from COVID-19, surpassing big cities in Metro Manila, which is considered the epicenter of infections, as of June 2021, according to figures from the Department of Health (DOH).

Davao City recorded the highest CFR at 3.43 percent in June this year with a population of 1.82 million. This is higher than that recorded in Quezon City at 1.47 percent, with a population of 3.15 million.

As of June 2021, Davao City has logged 674 deaths, with 21,991 total confirmed cases since the onset of the pandemic in March 2020. For 2021, it has so far logged 12,779 confirmed cases.

For its part, Octa research group said the CFR indicates the “capacity to save lives by helping Covid-19 cases recover.”

Aside from Davao City, the research group also flagged Bacolod, Iloilo, Cagayan de Oro, Dumaguete, Butuan, Tacloban, Tuguegarao, and the municipality of Polomolok as “areas of concern.”

In its report on June 20, Octa said Davao City’s ICU utilization rate was critical at 95 percent while its hospital bed utilization was moderate at 67 percent.

Octa added that Davao had a one-week growth rate of 26 percent and a reproduction number of 1.47.

In over an average of 3,000 tests per day, Davao had a one-week growth rate of 14 percent. Its average daily attack rate, meanwhile, is recorded at 12.74 per 100,000 population.

Octa’s research, however, clarified that in the Davao region, Tagum and Digos also recorded an increase in cases.

Meanwhile, Bacolod City followed Davao after it also showed a significant increase in new cases from June 13 to 19 per day compared to June 6 to 12 with 131. Iloilo and Cagayan de Oro also followed Bacolod.

Both Iloilo City’s hospital bed utilization rate and ICU utilization rate were at critical levels, while Bacolod’s hospitals were 64% occupied while ICUs were 61% full.

Meanwhile, Octa noted that the upward trend of cases in Dumaguete City is slowing down but the city’s average attack daily rate remained high at 43.80.

The research team also noted a significant increase in new COVID-19 cases in San Pablo City from 32 new cases to 39, Cebu City (37 to 54), and Baguio City (56 to 61).

On June 17, Davao City reported 482 new COVID-19 cases, the highest in the city since the start of the pandemic last year, the OCTA Research.

READ: Davao City records its highest new COVID cases since start of pandemic

INQUIRER.net has reached out for the comment of Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio but was only referred to the city’s COVID-19 task force, which has yet to respond to the query.