Philippines now a 'low risk' area for COVID-19 — DOH
MANILA, Philippines — The Philippines is now a “low-risk” area after the growth rate of the virus and the average daily attack rate declined, the Department of Health said Thursday.
Dr. Alethea De Guzman, the officer in charge of the DOH Epidemiology Bureau, said the country recorded a -9% growth rate in cases over the last two weeks.
Meanwhile, the average daily attack rate (ADAR) was at 5.42, lower than the 5.96 reported three to four weeks ago. ADAR is the number of cases in an area over a two-week period, divided by the population there.
“The risk classification nationally is already at low risk,” De Guzman said.
The country averaged 5,772 daily cases from June 24 to 30, slightly higher than 5,638 daily infections from June 17 to 23.
According to De Guzman, the department flagged four regions as high-risk areas after showing case increases. These were Davao region, Western Visayas, SOCCSKSARGEN, and Eastern Visayas.
The health official said the case trend in the capital region was plateauing after a slow decline in the past weeks.
“We often describe the trend of NCR as fragile. This is a crucial time for NCR because we don’t want it going up again,” De Guzman said.
In Luzon, all regions were exhibiting a decline in cases, except for Cordillera Administrative Region, Ilocos region, and MIMAROPA.
COVID-19 cases in Eastern Visayas continued to rise, while infections in Western Visayas saw slight increase. Cases in Central Visayas were plateauing.
In Mindanao, all regions had a downward trend in cases, save for Davao region, which was showing an inconsistent trend.
Metro Manila and its surrounding areas will remain under general community quarantine until July 15, while 21 areas were placed modified enhanced community quarantine.
The Philippines has so far reported 1.4 million COVID-19, including 24,662 deaths. Of the total, 3.4% were active cases.
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