DUMAGUETE CITY—Cases of COVID-19 in Negros Oriental have decreased, 22 days since it was reverted to the stricter modified enhanced community quarantine (MECQ).
In an online press conference Tuesday, Dr. Liland Estacion, assistant provincial health officer, said the MECQ and the no “dine-in policy” prevented mass gatherings and slowed down the spread of the virus.
As of July 6, Negros Oriental has 1,552 active COVID-19 cases. Last week, the active cases in the province reached over 2,300.
The province was placed under MECQ until July 15 due to a surge in COVID-19 cases.
Estacion said they detected at least three variants in the province: Alpha (B.1.1.7), Beta (B.1.351), and Theta (P.3).
The Theta and Alpha variants are now contained while contact tracing is still underway to locate possible contacts of the Beta variant.
While the COVID-19 cases in the province have decreased, Estacion hopes to “lower down” the quarantine status after July 15.
“I hope the trend of our cases [that] is going down will continue,” Estacion said.