THE number of new coronavirus disease (COVID-19) cases reported daily over the past seven days is now nearing the 4,000-mark, the latest case bulletin of the Department of Health (DOH) showed.
DOH data shows there was an average of 3,904 cases daily for the period of August 1 to 7, which is 13 percent higher than cases reported from July 25 to 31.”
In total, 27,331 COVID-19 cases were recorded in the last seven days, of which 76 were severe and critical. The DOH reported 80 deaths.
The health department said there are currently 772 severe and critical cases in the country, as of August 7. Of these, the report showed that 624 are occupying ICU beds, which is 24.8 percent of the 2,514 total nationwide.
On the other hand, the DOH said 6,648 of the new patients are occupying COVID-19 beds, or 30.9 percent of the 21,548 total beds allocated nationwide.
Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri said Sen. Imee Marcos has tested positive for COVID-19.
“Senator Imee Marcos, for the record, had written to us that she had tested positive for COVID-19… (She) is asking if she should still have to go on cam because she has raging fever. Maybe she can acknowledge, just acknowledge that she is online so we can mark her as present without having to open cam,” Zubiri said.
Zubiri said only 22 senators were physically present during Monday’s session, as Sen. Alan Peter Cayetano, who tested positive for COVID-19 last week, is still recovering.
Sen. Francis Escudero, who has been in isolation since last week after being exposed to a COVID-positive individual, already physically attended yesterday’s session.
The Senate on Monday started a stricter entry of visitors and guests, requiring them to present a negative antigen test 24 hours prior to their visit to the Senate.
BA.5 SUBVARIANT
In a televised public briefing, Philippine Genome Center (PGC) Executive Director Dr. Cynthia Saloma said their latest genome sequencing results showed that the BA.5 subvariant of the Omicron variant is the predominant lineage causing the current surge in cases in the country.
“If you look at it very closely, in the past month alone, the BA.5 is really the most predominant sample or variant that we are sequencing in the Philippines. It’s anywhere between 85 percent and above among our sequence samples,” Saloma said.
She added: “You can probably say that the current wave is the BA.5 wave in the country.”
She said the BA.5 even has further subvariants detected in the country.
“In the US and Europe, majority are BA.5.1. But, in the Philippines, majority of BA.5 subvariants is composed of BA.5.2,” said Saloma.
Currently, there are already 3,107 BA.5 cases detected in the country.
On the other hand, there are presently a total of 104 BA.4 cases and 174 BA.2.12.1 cases detected in the Philippines.
‘BER’ MONTHS
The independent OCTA Research said it expects the current surge in COVID-19 cases to last into the ‘ber months, contrary to its expectations of seeing a two-month wave in infections.
In a televised public briefing, OCTA fellow Guido David said they are not yet seeing the end of the current COVID-19 wave, which began in June.
“Initially, we expected a two-month wave due to Omicron BA.4 and BA.5 like what happened in South Africa. It began more or less around June, July, then August. We already exceeded two months and yet we haven’t peaked. It’s taking longer,” said David.
“Right now, it’s looking like it will last up to four or five months, and well into the ‘ber’ months. This wave, it’s possible that it is really prolonged,” he also said.
David said the prolonged wave is likely due to the presence of different Omicron subvariants in the country.
Another possible cause, he said, is the waning immunity of the existing COVID-19 vaccines.
“The people mostly had their vaccines last year and there are only a few getting booster shots. We are experiencing waning immunity, with our antibody levels going down,” said David.
He also cited the lower adherence to minimum public health standards by the people.
“We are not preventing people from going out because that is important to the economy. It is always important to observe the health protocols,” said David.
POSITIVITY RATES
And amid the current wave, OCTA Research reported that there are 33 areas in the country that currently have “high” to “very high” positivity rates.
Nineteen areas are currently with positivity rates of over 20 percent for a very high classification rate.
These include Capiz (64%), Camarines Sur (48.7%), Isabela (47.6%), Tarlac (41.9%), Aklan (40.1%), Nueva Ecija (38.4%), Pampanga (35%), Laguna (33.2%), Cagayan (30.5%), La Union (29.4%), Zambales (28.6%), Albay (28.2%), Bohol (26.9%), Quezon (25.1%), Pangasinan (25%), Negros Oriental (23.4%), Benguet (22%), Cavite (21.1%), and Palawan (20.4%).
Fourteen other areas are found to have positivity rates of above 10 percent for a high classification rate.
These include Rizal (18.8%), Misamis Oriental (18.4%), National Capital Region (17.5%), Zamboanga del Sur (16.9%), Lanao del Norte (16.7%), Iloilo (16.1%), South Cotabato (15.9%), Batangas (15.2%), Bulacan (14.7%), Leyte (13.9%), Cebu (13.3%), Bataan (13.2%), Negros Occidental (10.4%), and Davao del Sur (10.1%).
The World Health Organization has set a threshold of 5 percent for positivity rate. — With Raymond Africa
