Cebu City records low COVID-19 mortality rate, high recovery rate despite ECQ

MANILA, Philippines — Cebu City maintains a high recovery rate and a low mortality rate for the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) despite being placed under an enhanced community quarantine (ECQ), Cebu CIty Mayor Edgar Labella said on Thursday.

Labella noted that the city has one of the lowest mortality rates in the country.

“Medyo nadagdagan pero still at 1.8 percent ang mortality rate namin. At ang recovery rate namin medyo bumaba pero mataas pa rin, mga 48 percent as compared to the national recovery rate,” he said in an interview with ABS-CBN’s Teleradyo.

(The mortality rate here slightly increased at 1.8 percent. The recovery rate decreased a little but is still high at 48 percent as compared to the national recovery rate.)

Data from the Department of Health as of Wednesday showed there was a total of 4,216 confirmed COVID-19 cases in Cebu City. Of this number, 328 have already recovered while 69 have died.

However, Labella said there was a difference between figures on the ground and those reported at the national level.

“Ang nakita na positive was 4,000 pero ang recovery natin more or less mga 2,000 plus na. Kaya ang assessment, medyo may deperensya sa records on the ground at records sa national na umabot,” he said.

(We have 4,000 confirmed cases but more or less 2,000 have recovered. There is a difference between the records on the ground and those reaching the national level.)

As of Wednesday, there have been 8,656 recoveries out of 32,295 confirmed cases in the country. This means a case recovery rate of 26.80 percent.

There have been 1,204 deaths nationwide due to the illness, which is equivalent to a case fatality rate of 3.73 percent.

Cebu City was placed under ECQ from June 16 to June 30 following a high rate of coronavirus infection.

Labella explained that the number of coronavirus cases in the city was high since the local government has already started targeted testing and intensive contact tracing as early as the last week of March.

Despite the mortality and recovery rates in Cebu City, Labella said the local government still adhered with the order of the national government to place the city under ECQ.

“We are not making excuses, whatever it is, sinusunod talaga namin ang order ng Presidente. Nag-ECQ kami,” he said.

(We are not making excuses. Whatever it is, we followed the order of the President in placing the city under ECQ.)

/MUF