Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, October 3) — With the increasing number of infections in Metro Manila, COVID-19 watchdog OCTA warned that the country may record up to 4,000 daily cases this month.
“That’s for nationwide…We already have 3,800 [cases] just last Saturday. It’s possible we can reach up to 4,000,” OCTA Research Fellow Guido David told CNN Philippines’ The Source on Monday.
“As we mentioned, it’s the ‘ber’ months now. We may see an increase in cases but it may reach up to 2,000 per day in Metro Manila or so and maybe 4,000 nationwide like we see in the past few days. Hopefully cases subside soon,” David said.
The country recorded 2,117 new cases on Sunday, October 2, with a 15.1% positivity rate. Of this number, 908 were from Metro Manila alone.
David said from a 17.5% positivity rate in August, Metro Manila’s positivity rate is now at 19.1%, close to the 20% cut-off that would put it under a “very high positivity rate.” He said, however, that hospitalization rates remain low.
He added that the return of face-to-face classes, the optional mask mandate, and waning immunity could be among the reasons behind the increasing cases, as well as the possible entry of a new subvariant which the country has not detected yet.
David called on the public not to be complacent and to continue wearing face masks to protect themselves.
“Although face mask is optional, it doesn’t mean it’s not required. In areas where we are seeing an uptick in cases, we highly recommend the public to practice caution and add areas of protection,” he said.
