The Department of Health (DOH) is expecting more COVID-19 cases in the coming weeks as the country is now seeing another “peak” of infections, the agency said Monday.
Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire, in a CNN Philippines interview, said they are closely monitoring the National Capital Region (NCR) where there has been a significant 70 percent increase in COVID-19 cases.
Vergeire said that the average number of cases in the region has doubled compared to the previous week, and its average daily attack rate has also already gone up to 1.02.
“Right now what we’re seeing is that the number of cases is continuously increasing, especially here in the National Capital Region, and we can see that this is really the start of the peak in the number of cases,” Vergeire said.
“We are again guiding the public and making them aware that this might be the start that the cases will continuously rise in the next couple of weeks,” she added.
Aside from NCR, the DOH is monitoring the increase in COVID-19 cases in the Ilocos Region, Cagayan Valley, Calabarzon, Mimaropa, Western Visayas, and Northern Mindanao, she said.
Despite the increase in cases, the Health official maintained that the country is not experiencing another COVID-19 surge.
“Let us not call this a surge because we try to avoid using this term from the previous increases in cases because this has caused a lot of confusion among the public,” she said.
Vergeire also attributed the reasons for such a rise in COVID-19 infections to the entry of the more transmissible Omicron subvariants such as the BA 2.12.1, BA.4, and BA.5; the increased mobility in the country; and the waning immunity of the vaccinated population.
Recent data from National Vaccination Operations Center (NVOC) showed that 70 million Filipinos are already fully vaccinated, while at least 74.8 million received their first dose.
Meanwhile, booster uptake remains a challenge, with only 14.7 million individuals receiving their first booster dose and some 648,000 for their second booster dose.
Currently, the second booster shot can only be given to frontline health care workers, senior citizens, and immunocompromised individuals.
The Philippines on Sunday logged 612 new COVID-19 infections, which brought the active case count to 4,529 up from 4,176 recorded on Saturday.
The new cases were the highest since April 3. Of the number, 293 are from Metro Manila.
Active infections stood at 4,529. The country’s total confirmed cases climbed to 3,696,264.
The positivity rate from June 12 to 18 is at 3.1 percent, 1.9 percent higher than the previous week.
DOH data showed that the total number of COVID-related deaths in the country is 60,467.
Total recoveries, meanwhile, reached 3,631,268.
From June 6 to 12, the country recorded 1,682 new COVID-19 cases, or an average of 240 per day, the DOH said. This is 30.4 percent higher than cases from May 30 to June 5, the DOH said.
Despite the uptick in cases, the DOH dismissed OCTA Research Group’s statement that there was a “weak surge” in infections. Most of the infections were mild to moderate and did not need hospitalization, the DOH said.
The Philippine Genome Center has detected 16 more cases of highly transmissible omicron subvariants BA.5 and BA.2.12.1, the DOH said Wednesday.
Metro Manila and dozens of other areas will stay under COVID-19 Alert Level 1 until the end of June, Malacañang said, even as the capital region recorded an uptick in new infections.
Under Alert 1, all indoor establishments and public transport may operate at 100 percent capacity, but only for those with full vaccination status.
Authorities continue to remind the public to follow minimum health protocols, especially wearing of face masks.
An infectious disease expert said there was no indication yet that the alert status of Metro Manila would be raised to level 2.
The NCR needs to report 818 new cases daily to reach an average daily attack rate (ADAR) of 6 per 100,000 population, the DOH earlier said.
Hospital utilization rate for COVID should also be 50 percent or above, Dr. Edsel Salvana, member of the DOH-technical advisory group, said during a televised briefing.
“At this point, there’s no indication we need to move to Alert Level 2. The purpose of the alert level system is really to preserve the health care system. We’re far from reaching the point where it is overwhelmed,” Salvana said in Filipino.
He said the public’s use of face masks helps, too.
Dr. Maricar Limpin, former president of the Philippine College of Physicians, said hospital admissions due to COVID-19 remained low.
Limpin urged the government to ramp up the inoculation of booster doses and to push the continued use of face masks, whether indoor or outdoor.
At the same time, Salvana said vaccinating the general population with a second COVID-19 booster shot does not make sense at this point because the benefits are limited.
“The benefit of a second booster for the general population is insignificant, so it will not make sense to give it to them just because the vaccines are about to expire,” he said.
“We can’t easily give medicine, which has side effects, just because it is about to expire. The first rule of medicine is to do no harm. Unless we have proven that the benefits outweigh the risk, then we cannot give the vaccine just because it is about to expire,” Salvana said.
Salvana also said the focus should be on ensuring that the fully vaccinated get their first booster.
“It is the first booster which has incremental, big benefits,” he said.
The DOH is set to issue additional guidelines for giving the first booster shot to children aged 12 to 17 who are fully vaccinated against COVID-19.
“The two doses are not enough protection, though it does significantly decrease the risk of having severe COVID-19… Being fully vaccinated won’t give as much protection against other variants of concern, including Omicron. It is the first booster that protects against other Omicron sublineages,” he said.