Cebu sees spike in COVID-19 deaths

FAITH AND DISTANCE In this photo taken last month, Cebuanos observe physical distancing as they attend Mass outside the Basilica del Sto. Niño in downtown Cebu City. —NESTLE SEMILLA

CEBU CITY, Cebu, Philippines — A total of 182 COVID-19 patients died in public and private hospitals in Cebu last month, about 75 percent of whom were unvaccinated against the coronavirus, a regional health official in Central Visayas said.

Dr. Mary Jean Loreche, the chief pathologist of the Department of Health (DOH) in the region, said that of the 110 fatalities in public hospitals, 91 were unvaccinated, 17 were fully vaccinated and two were partially vaccinated against COVID-19.

On the other hand, there were 72 other deaths in private hospitals, including 45 unvaccinated individuals, 26 fully vaccinated and one partially vaccinated.

While the number of COVID-19 fatalities in Cebu from Jan. 1 to Jan. 29 had increased, Loreche said this was lower than the figures recorded during the surge caused by the Delta variant in August last year.

During that time, at least 426 COVID-19 patients died in private hospitals alone. Of these, 353 (83 percent) were unvaccinated.

Loreche, however, stressed that the number of COVID-19 fatalities included people who were admitted because of other health problems, such as stroke, heart attack, or the need for surgery. Many would only learn that they had the virus after passing through the hospital’s triage area and getting the required testing, she said.

Stop complacency

Loreche urged the public not to underestimate the Omicron variant which was more transmissible than the Delta variant.

“I call on the people to follow the health protocols and to not be complacent. I hope the public will have themselves vaccinated against COVID-19 since the situation is dangerous for the vulnerable population,” she said.

Loreche said a community transmission of Omicron variant in Cebu and the rest of Central Visayas was happening as five out of 22 cases confirmed by the Philippine Genome Center came from community samples.

“Even before the variant was detected, the increasing number of people who got infected showed that the Omicron was already here,” she said.

As of Jan. 31, Cebu, including the highly urbanized cities of Cebu, Mandaue, and Lapu-Lapu, recorded 15,002 active cases, according to the DOH.

The Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases placed Cebu and the rest of Central Visayas under alert level 3 from Feb. 1 to Feb. 15 to slow down the spread of infections.

READ: Cebu tops list of provinces with most new COVID-19 cases on Friday