MANILA, Philippines — An increase in new coronavirus cases has been observed in areas outside Metro Manila, a fellow of OCTA Research said Monday.
“Cases in regions outside ‘NCR Plus’ are increasing,” OCTA Research fellow Guido David said in Filipino during a briefing, referring to the capital region and its neighboring provinces of Bulacan, Cavite, Laguna and Rizal.
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“All over the country, we’re starting to see an increase in cases,” he added.
David said it is possible that the trend of cases in Metro Manila, Cavite, Rizal and Bulacan has peaked or is close to the peak.
According to the OCTA fellow, Cagayan Valley, Pangasinan, La Union, Benguet and Bicol region have high COVID-19 growth rates. The spike in cases is accelerating in other parts of Central Luzon.
He added that cases are also increasing in Tacloban City, Western Visayas, Central Visayas, Zamboanga City and Davao del Sur.
The growth rate in Metro Manila—the epicenter of the surge believed to be driven by the Delta variant—decreased to -1% from 2%, David said, although he stressed that “we cannot celebrate yet.”
In a tweet, David said the positivity rate in the capital region went down to 50% from 54% earlier this month. Positivity rate refers to the percentage of tests coming back positive.
This indicates that either cases in Metro Manila have peaked and are now beginning to decline, or the region’s testing capacity has already reached its limit, resulting in an artificial decrease in numbers, he said.
NCR Daily Growth Rate now at -1%. NCR new cases could be decreasing but trends need validation in the coming week. @dzbb @allangatus @ali_sotto @dzrhnews @DZAR1026 @NewsRmn @dzme_1530khz @ABSCBNNews @sofiatomacruz @News5PH pic.twitter.com/uL6XusaTvx
— Dr. Guido David (@iamguidodavid) January 17, 2022
Daily cases in the Philippines have reached record highs as an Omicron-driven surge in infections rips through Metro Manila and surrounding provinces.
The number of active cases is currently at 287,856. — Gaea Katreena Cabico