PH curbed spread of COVID-19 Delta variant — DOH

File photo shows the chapel of Quezon City General Hospital and Medical Center (QCGHMC) which was converted to a ward amid the COVID-19 pandemic.  (GRIG C. MONTEGRANDE  / INQUIRER)

MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Health (DOH) on Monday claimed that the Philippines was able to control the spread of the more infectious COVID-19 Delta variant.

“Hindi naman po natin sinasabing natalo na natin ang Delta dahil ang Delta po naandito pa sa atin. Nine out of 10 of those sequenced here in the country are all Delta variants already ‘no,” Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said during the DOH forum.

(We are not saying that we defeated the Delta variant because it is still here.)

Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire (Screengrab from the DOH Facebook page)

“So, ibig sabihin, nandito na siya sa atin. Pero, ang pinakamaganda, we were able to control. We were able to reduce the number of cases at naiyos po natin ‘yung health system natin, and that is what is most important for us,” she added.

(It means, it is already here. But, what’s good is, we were able to control it. We were able to reduce the number of cases and we fixed our health system, and that is what is most important for us.)

Vergeire’s comment was in response to vaccine czar Secretary Carlito Galvez Jr.’s statement that the country has defeated the Delta variant.

“We were expecting talaga na talagang tayo ay magkakaroon ng sobrang taas na kaso, tayo ay ma-o-overwhelm, tayo ay magkakaroon ng maraming pagkakamatay pero hindi po natin naabot ‘yung projected number of cases. Hindi po natin naabot ‘yung overwhelmed health systems,” Vergeire noted.

(We were really expecting a lot of cases and deaths, that we would be overwhelmed, but we have not reached the projected number of cases and overwhelmed health systems.)

“Although, nahirapan po tayo, we were all challenged, pero nakita natin ano, we were able to reduce the number of cases in about one and a half months after na pumasok at tumaas ang mga kaso natin from September 5 to 11. So, I think ‘yun ‘yung konteksto ni Secretary Galvez,” she pointed out.

(Although it was difficult, we were all challenged, but we were able to reduce the number of cases in about one and a half months after the Delta variant entered the country and our cases spiked from September 5 to 11. I think that is the context of what Secretary Galvez said.)

During the peak of the COVID-19 Delta variant cases, the Philippines logged around 20,000 daily cases in September.

The latest data of the DOH showed that the country recorded 5,279 new COVID-19 cases.

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