By Christine Fabro
The independent research group OCTA flags Davao City for its significant increase in the number of new COVID-19 cases, along with eight other areas of concern in Visayas and Mindanao.
In its latest monitoring report, Davao City is projected to surpass Quezon City with the highest number of new cases as it recorded 206 new cases for the period of May 31 to June 6, a growth rate of 54%.
Meanwhile, its average daily attack rate (ADAR) spiked at 11.34%.
According to the Department of Health (DOH), an area is considered of moderate risk if it has an ADAR of less than 10 per 10,000 population, while an ADAR greater than 10 is considered high risk.
Quezon City has recorded a -22% growth rate for the period of May 31 to June 6.
OCTA named other areas of concern including Cagayan De Oro, General Santos City, Koronadal, Cotabato City, Bacolod, Iloilo City, Dumaguete, and Tuguegarao.
From 30% to 40% share of COVID-19 cases from the National Capital Region (NCR) in early 2021, it has dropped down to 13% at present.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO) Representative Dr. Rabindra Abeyasinghe, different COVID-19 variants may have caused the rise of cases in other parts of the country.
“Increased proportions of this alpha and beta variant are… becoming the predominant type. And this could also explain why we are seeing continuous increase in cases in many places,” Abeyasinghe said. – rir
