The University of the Philippines-OCTA Research Group’s latest study showed that the country’s reproduction number has slightly gone down to .91.
This implies a slowdown in the spread of the Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) given the fact that it is lower than one.The number of daily new cases has also decreased from 1,574 to 1,396.
Despite the modest improvements, there are some places in the country whose cases have increased. Included in the top 5 list with the most number are the cities of Davao, Quezon, Manila, Pasig and Makati. Davao City has more than 100 reported new cases, with a 5.5 percent attack rate, and a hospital occupancy nearing critical level while Mankayan, Benguet has reached 100 percent of its occupancy rate as indicated by its full-packed hospitals.
Areas of concern have also been identified including the provinces of Davao del Sur, Benguet, Isabela, Cagayan, Ilocos Norte, Pangasinan, Leyte and Bataan.
The OCTA Research Group explained the spike in cases last week is the effect of the series of typhoons that hit the country which drove hundreds of people to seek refuge in cramped evacuation centers.
Another explanation given is the possible violation of minimum health standards by some individuals and the tendency of people to go out of their homes due to pandemic fatigue.
The group recommended that local government units (LGUs) to intensify their testing, tracing and isolation measures to stop the spread of the disease especially this holiday season. – Report from Mark Fetalco
