PH COVID-19 positivity rate dips to 6.6%; infections down by 28%

MANILA, Philippines — The country’s COVID-19 positivity rate and the number of infections have dropped, the Department of Health (DOH) reported Friday.

“We now are averaging 426 cases per day. So, ito po ay mas mababa (this is lower) by 28 percent kumpara doon sa nakaraang linggo (compared to the past week),” DOH officer-in-charge Maria Rosario Vergeire said in a forum.

“Also, our positivity rate ‘pag tinignan natin, bumaba din po siya (when you look at it, it also decreased) from 8.8 percent last week, ngayon po ay (it is now) 6.6 percent,” she continued.

While the country’s positivity rate has dropped, it is still beyond the World Health Organization’s threshold of 5 percent.

COVID-19 cases in the country are “continuously going down,” Vergeire noted, adding that there is no assurance that the decline will be persistent.

READ: DOH: Recent drop in COVID cases not sign of downtrend

Meanwhile, healthcare utilization or hospital admissions remain at low risk across all regions.

However, the DOH is monitoring some areas, including Malabon and Pasig in Metro Manila, because of the low number of hospital beds available.

Vergeire said they are “not seeing any significant effect of the holidays” in the current number of COVID-19 cases.

Based on the latest data, the Philippines has 11,779 active COVID-19 infections.

/MUF/abc