Rise in new COVID-19 cases still 'insignificant' —Vergeire

The increasing number of new COVID-19 cases in the country is still insignificant as hospital utilization remains manageable, according to Department of Health (DOH) officer-in-charge Maria Rosario Vergeire on Tuesday.

Vergeire said that as of April 3, the daily case average is at 268 — a 29% increase from last week.

“Itong pagtaas ng kaso nakikita natin sa iba’t ibang lugar sa ating bansa, but up until now, it remains to be insignificant. It only becomes significant ang pagtaas ng kaso kapag nakita natin na alongside with the increase in the number of cases, nakikita natin na tumataas din ang mga admisyon natin sa mga ospital,” she said at a press conference.

(We see this increase in cases in different areas in our country, but up until now, it remains to be insignificant. The increase in cases only becomes significant when we see that alongside it, admissions in hospitals are also rising.)

She said that the DOH analyzed the situation in areas where infections are rising, and found that their hospitals are still manageable and are not breaching the threshold set to impose stricter response.

“‘Pag tinignan natin ang utilization ng ating mga kama across the country, nasa low risk pa rin tayo. It is still at 16%,” Vergeire said.

(If we look at our bed utilization across the country, we are still at low risk. It is still at 16%.)

She thus said the upticks should not be a cause of concern, as long as the public knows how to protect themselves from COVID-19 by knowing when to wear face masks and to get vaccinated.

So far, 78 million Filipinos are fully vaccinated against COVID-19, while 23 million have received their booster shots. —KBK, GMA Integrated News