FROM 24,938 last Monday, new coronavirus disease (COVID-19) cases dipped to 17,677 yesterday, the first time in nearly three weeks that less than 20K new infections were reported by the Department of Health.
In its latest bulletin, the DOH said total cases in the country rose to 3,459,646 while 79 more lost their battle against the deadly virus, raising the death toll to 53,598 for a case fatality rate of 1.55 percent.
The last time less than 20K cases was reported was on January 6, when there were 17,220 new infections.
The current positivity rate in the country stood at 37.2 percent among the 43,874 tested samples on January 23.
Active cases also dropped to 247,451 from 262,997 last Monday, with over 235,000 mild cases and more than 7,400 asymptomatic cases.
The DOH also reported 33,144 additional recoveries, raising the number of survivors to 3,158,597.
The Department of Foreign Affairs said 145 more overseas Filipinos were infected with COVID-19 last week, raising the total number of infections to 24,518 since the pandemic began nearly two years ago.
Of these, 13,307 were recorded in the Middle East and African regions, followed by 6,482 in Asia and the Pacific, 3,653 in Europe, and 1, 076 in the Americas.
No new fatalities were recorded. In all, 1,458 overseas Filipinos have succumbed to the deadly virus.
The DFA also recorded 39 new recoveries, bringing the number of survivors to 14,480, with 8,580 still undergoing treatment.
The Muntinlupa City Health Office said the city has logged zero critical cases among residents who have received their COVID-19 jab but still contracted the virus.
Muntinlupa CHO chief Dr. Juancho Bunyi said as of January 21, at least 461,766 individuals in Muntinlupa have received their first dose while 395,435 are fully vaccinated.
Muntinlupa Mayor Jaime Fresnedi urged city residents who have yet to be vaccinated to get their COVID shots.
As of yesterday, Muntinlupa has logged 36,812 confirmed cases with 31,238 recoveries, 4,982 active cases, and 592 deaths. — With Ashzel Hachero and Noel Talacay
