Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, January 5) – The country’s new COVID-19 cases surged to 10,775 on Wednesday, almost twice the number logged the day before, according to the Department of Health.
This is a record high, suprassing the 29.4% logged on Sept. 9, when the country was battling with the surge caused by the Delta variant.
This is the highest single-day rise since Oct. 10, and it pushed the overall tally to 2,871,745.
However, the DOH noted nine testing laboratories failed to submit their latest data. On average, it said these nine facilities contributed 2.2% of all samples tested and 5.3% of all positive results in the last two weeks.
The DOH bulletin also showed 44,643 coronavirus tests were reported on Jan. 3. The positivity rate was at 31.7% – up from Tuesday’s 26.5% – which means nearly 1 in 3 people tested that day turned out infected.
Last week, the positivity rate was just at 4.5%, while it was 0.9% two weeks back. To show adequate testing and that transmission has been controlled, US nonprofit Covid Act Now has recommended a positivity rate below 3%, while the World Health Organization has set the ideal percentage to below 5%.
Active cases are also highest since Nov. 2, accounting for 39,974 or 1.4% of the total.
The DOH said 1,294 of these currently ill patients manifest no symptoms, while 33,866 have symptoms tagged as mild; 2,983 as moderate; 1,512 as severe; and 319 as critical.
The department added that of the newly reported cases, 99% or 10,688 were detected over the past 14 days. Metro Manila, now classified as at “critical risk” for COVID-19, was still the top contributing region with 7,420 more virus-hit residents. Calabarzon came next with 1,719, followed by Central Luzon with 798.
READ: DOH: NCR now at critical risk, Region 4A under high-risk
Another 605 patients were also added to the survivor count, which climbed to 2,780,109.
Meanwhile, 58 more fatalities were confirmed for a total of 51,662. Of the 58 deaths, the DOH said eight occurred in December, another eight in November, 24 in October, 15 in September and three in August.
After final validation, it added that it reclassified as deaths 57 cases previously declared as recoveries.
It also removed 39 duplicates from the total case count, along with 110 cases found to have tested negative.
