Sunday, December 5, 2021

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PH lists below 1,000 Covid cases for 12 days straight

Posted: 05 Dec 2021 01:14 AM PST

THE Department of Health (DOH) on Sunday, December 5, 2021, logged for the 12th straight day below 1,000 cases of the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19).

In its 4 p.m. Sunday case bulletin, the DOH recorded 603 fresh cases of Covid-19.

The positivity rate of the Philippines was at 1.8 percent out of the 35,950 tests conducted on December 3.

The new coronavirus cases raised the Philippines' total caseload to 2,834,775.

The DOH also logged 156 mortalities, increasing the country's death toll to 49,386. This meant that 1.74 percent of all cases died due to Covid-19.

The health department, however, said of the 156 reported deaths, only 12 occurred in December 2021. A total of 36 percent of the reported mortalities on Sunday occurred in November 2021 due to late encoding of death information to COVIDKaya.

"This issue is currently being coordinated with the Epidemiology and Surveillance Units to ensure information is up to date," the DOH said.

A total of 951 patients also recovered from the disease, bringing the total recoveries to 2,771,536 or 97.8 percent.

The Philippines also recorded 13,853 active cases or only 0.5 percent of the total cases.

Of the active cases, 5,532 cases were mild, 3,903 were moderate, 2,410 were severe, 738 were critical and 1,270 were asymptomatic.

As for the healthcare utilization rate, 26 percent of intensive care unit beds, 25 percent of isolation beds, 14 percent of ward beds and 14 percent of ventilators have been utilized.

The health agency also said two laboratories were not operational on December 3. Four laboratories also failed to submit data to the Covid-19 Document Repository System.

Based on data over the past 14 days, the contribution of these six laboratories was approximately 0.9 percent in all samples tested and 1.3 percent in all positive individuals.

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DILG warns over conduct of Christmas parties amid Omicron threat

Posted: 04 Dec 2021 10:57 PM PST

THE Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) on Saturday, December 5, 2021, warned over the conduct of in-person holiday parties amid the threat of the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) Omicron variant.

DILG spokesperson Undersecretary Jonathan Malaya said holidays parties are allowed under areas Alert Level 2 and lower, but it should follow the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) protocol of 50-percent venue capacity with additional 10 percent on venues with safety seal.

He also reminded that attendees should adhere to the minimum health protocols, such as the wearing of face masks and the observance of physical distancing.

"Iyon po ang mga pamantayang kailangan sundin kasi kung hindi po susunod ang mga establishments na magiging host nitong mga Christmas parties na ito ay puwede pong i-revoke ang Safety Seal nila o kaya naman isuspinde ang kanilang business permit," Malaya said in a televised public briefing.

(Those are the standards that need to be followed because if the establishments that will host these Christmas parties do not follow, they can revoke their Safety Seal or suspend their business permit.)

Department of Health (DOH) Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire cited the 13 people who were infected by the Omicron variant after attending a Christmas Party in Norway. It was the biggest Omicron outbreak outside South Africa where the virus was first detected.

"The virus is still here; let's continue to practice the safety protocols. Let's have that sacrifice first para sa kapakanan ng ating pamilya at sa kapakanan po ng buong sambayanang Filipino," she said.

Department of Science and Technology vaccine expert panel chairperson Doctor Nina Gloriano also noted the importance of vaccination amid the Christmas season.

"Nandoon ang pag-iingat so merong mga party na mangyayari, 'di maiiwasan 'yan pero maganda 'yung narinig ko na dapat lahat ng sasali doon ay bakunado at lahat ng magsisilbi doon sa party na 'yun ay bakunado and then you have the physical distancing," said Gloriani.

(There is caution. Parties will happen, it's inevitable, but it's good that I heard that everyone who participates should be vaccinated and everyone who will serve at that party should be vaccinated and then you have the physical distancing.)

"Sana po maintindihan ng mga tao 'yung need for immunization. Sabi nga natin dahil sa mga variant medyo bumaba 'yung proteksiyon, pero it is still enough to protect you especially from severe form of Covid," she added.

(I hope people understand the need for immunization. We say that because of the variants, protection has been compromised, but it is still enough to protect you especially from severe forms of Covid.)

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LGUs urged to strengthen Covid-19 testing amid Omicron threat

Posted: 04 Dec 2021 10:55 PM PST

THE Department of Health (DOH) on Saturday, December 4, 2021, urged local government units (LGUs) to strengthen their coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) testing amid the threat of its more transmissible and infectious variant, Omicron.

DOH undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said although Omicron is yet to be detected in the country, early implementation of safety and preventive measures against it is better to lessen its impact on people's lives.

She said around 18,000 samples, particularly from returning Filipinos, have undergone genome sequencing, but none of it turned out to be positive for Omicron.

"Wala naman tayong nakikitaan na mga lugar sa ating bansa ngayon na merong biglang pagtaas ng mga kaso o nagka-cluster ng infections because that can be one of the determinants kung saka-sakali na nakapasok na itong Omicron variant because if you see in the other countries, nagpuputukan po ang mga kaso nila," she said during a televised press briefing.

(We don't see any places in our country today that have a sudden increase in cases or clusters of infections because that can be one of the determinants if by chance this Omicron variant has entered. If you see in other countries, their cases are rising.)

Over the past 12 days, daily Covid-19 cases in the Philippines did not exceed 1,000, which, according to Vergeire, indicates that the Covid-19 situation in the country is getting better.

She said the drop of Covid-19 cases in the country will continue as long as the Omicron variant will not enter the country and this can be done through strict border control.

Vergeire said the Omicron variant may cause another Covid-19 case upsurge and LGUs should prepare for the "worst-case scenario" as early as now.

"Yes, this variant has a lot of mutations na kailangan po cautious tayo...But hindi po natin kailangan mag-panic at matakot. Kailangan lang po sumunod tayo sa ating mga safety protocols," she said.

(Yes, this variant has a lot of mutations that we need to be cautious about... but we don't need to panic and be afraid. We just need to follow our safety protocols.)

The national government has earlier imposed restrictions on flights coming from Austria, Czech Republic, Hungary, The Netherlands, Switzerland, Belgium, Italy, South Africa, Botswana, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Lesotho, Eswatini and Mozambique where local cases of Omicron variant have been detected.

Passengers who come from or have been to these countries over the last 14 days are not allowed to enter the Philippines.

The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said nearly a hundred Filipinos were stranded in these countries.

Foreign Affairs Undersecretary Sarah Lou Arriola, however, said the Philippine government will conduct repatriation flights in the said countries from December 10 to 13.

Vergeire said currently, 253 individuals arrived in the country from South Africa before the implementation of the flight ban under monitoring. They also underwent another swab testing and isolation.

Meanwhile, Department of Science and Technology vaccine expert panel chairperson Doctor Nina Gloriano urged the public to get booster Covid-19 shots as a preventive measure against the Omicron variant.

The World Health Organization earlier said vaccines still provide the best protection against the Covid-19 although manufacturers are yet to provide complete evidence on its efficacy against the Omicron variant.

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