DOH flags Ilocos region as ‘high-risk’ area for COVID-19 infections

A health worker in Ilocos Norte province administers a COVID-19 vaccine to a resident. (Photo courtesy of Ilocos Norte provincial government)

LAOAG CITY, Ilocos Norte — The Department of Health (DOH) on Tuesday classified the Ilocos region as one of the “high-risk” areas for virus infections across the country amid the detection of the highly contagious variants of COVID-19.

Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said in a televised briefing that the Ilocos region has a “high” average daily attack rate (ADAR), which is 8.47 cases per 100,000 population.

An ADAR is considered high risk if it reaches a rate of seven and above.

Citing DOH data, Vergeire said the region’s health care utilization rate is at 59.01 percent while its intensive care unit (ICU) utilization rate has been tagged as “high-risk” at 72.78 percent.

Dr. Rheuel Bobis, COVID-19 focal person of the DOH in the Ilocos region, reported Tuesday that the province had logged at least 38,252 total infections since the pandemic began last year.

Pangasinan province accounted for the highest number of COVID-19 cases recorded in the region with 13,413 cases, followed by La Union (9,015), Ilocos Norte (8,497), Ilocos Sur (5,257), and Dagupan City (2,070), said Bobis.

The DOH also noted an infection surge in Ilocos Norte as it had the highest number of active cases across the region, with 243 patients being treated in hospitals while 3,439 are in the home and facility isolation, Bobis said.

Last month, the DOH confirmed that some residents in the region were infected with the Alpha, Beta, and Delta variants of COVID-19. INQ