DOH logs 433 new infections, 369 recoveries on Christmas Day

MANILA – The Philippines on Christmas Day saw a slight uptick in the new cases of coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) with 433 infections.

In its latest case bulletin, the Department of Health (DOH) said active cases now stand at 9,376, of which 458 are asymptomatic, 3,430 are mild, 3,337 are moderate, 1,777 are severe, and 374 are critical.

Meanwhile, it logged 369 recoveries, raising the number of those who recuperated from the disease to 2,777,818.

A total of 137 new fatalities, however, brought to 51,187 the coronavirus death toll.

Of the 2,838,381 confirmed cases since the pandemic began, 0.3 percent are undergoing treatment, 97.9 percent have recovered, and 1.8 percent died, the DOH said.

The positivity rate rose from 1.4 percent on December 22 to 1.6 percent on December 23 based on the 25,779 people tested for SARS-CoV-2.

The DOH noted that two laboratories were not operational on December 23 while five failed to submit their data to the Covid-19 Document Repository System (CDRS).

These seven laboratories contributed to at least 0.9 percent of the samples tested and about 0.6 percent of the positive individuals based on the data over the past 14 days.

The DOH asked the public to remain vigilant and refrain from being complacent, noting the threat of Covid-19 is still there.

“(D)apat natin ipagpatuloy ang tamang pagsunod sa minimum public health standards at laging magsuot ng face mask na may face shield, mag-physical distancing, at maghugas ng kamay (We should religiously follow the minimum public health standards, such as the wearing of masks, physical distancing, and washing of hands),” it said.

At least 18 percent of the 3,500 intensive care unit (ICU) beds, 22 percent of the 19,300 isolation beds, and 11 percent of the 12,300 ward beds dedicated to Covid-19 patients are filled.

In Metro Manila, 19 percent of the 1,200 ICU beds, 17 percent of the 4,500 isolation beds, and 16 percent of the 3,700 allotted ward beds are occupied.