The Department of Health (DOH) on Tuesday said the rise in the number of COVID-19 cases could reach its peak by the end of January, based on the assumption that the highly contagious Omicron variant of the coronavirus is already spreading locally.
Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire, in a television interview, said this is based on the DOH’s initial projections based on the current trend in daily infections, and that the numbers would be even higher than the peak of the Delta variant last year, with over 22,000 cases daily.
“What I can give the public as an information right now would be that we did initial estimates, the assumption would be based on calculations that Omicron is eight times more transmissible than Delta and that the peak will happen by the end of January,” Vergeire told CNN Philippines.
“We are now assuming that Omicron is in our communities and we are having this transmission within our communities already. According to experts in other countries, cases double every two days. That is what we are seeing right now and t communities already,” she said.
Health Secretary Francisco Duque III earlier said Omicron may already be responsible for the sharp increase of COVID-19 infections in the previous days.
Vergeire said it could already be assumed that there is already local transmission of the highly transmissible variant.
The DOH earlier reported 10 additional Omicron cases, bringing the total Omicron caseload in the country to 14. Three were local cases—two in Bicol and one in the National Capital Region.
“The assumption is there because for us to be able to declare that there’s local transmission, we need definitive evidence and we need this confirmation coming from Philippine Genome Center through whole genome sequencing,” she said.
Vergeire said ideally, 100,000 tests should be done per day. She said the number of tests has already increased in Metro Manila, although there is still low output in other regions.
“One of the factors that we are looking at is that most of the local governments right now are using rapid antigen tests for them to supplement the RT-PCR test that they have. This can be one of the factors that we have right now for the low testing output,” Vergeire said.
There have been calls for the government to conduct free mass testing in order to curb the spread of COVID-19.
Vergeire said those eligible for free testing are those who are symptomatic or those who have been exposed to a COVID-19 patient.
Earlier, the DOH said it has identified three close contacts of the 10 new Omicron COVID-19 variant cases in the Philippines.
Vergeire saidof the three close contacts, one tested negative and the two others are subject for retesting.
The DOH reported the ten additional Omicron cases on Friday, Dec. 31, 2021, bringing the total Omicron caseload in the country to 14.
Three were local cases: two in Bicol and one in the National Capital Region.
Meanwhile, of the 11 imported cases, nine were returning overseas Filipinos and two were foreign nationals.
Vergeire said that all of them were either asymptomatic or had mild symptoms and have finished the minimum 10-day isolation period.
Vergeire said that the one close contact of the first Omicron patient in the country tested negative for COVID-19. The same was true for the second patient’s seven co-passengers and the third patient’s 30 co-passengers.
She also said that all local Omicron cases had also been located, traced, and completed the isolation period as required by the Inter-Agency Task Force and had been tagged as recovered before the release of genome results.
In other developments:
• San Juan City reported that active COVID-19 cases in the city jumped from only five two weeks before the New Year to 255 as of Monday. Mayor Francis Zamora said the sharp rise in cases caused him to agree to mobility restrictions on unvaccinated people.
• The Philippine Ports Authority on Tuesday said five more of its personnel tested positive for COVID-19. The announcement came a day after 40 personnel tested positive on antigen tests.