The Department of Health (DOH) advised COVID-19 patients to continue to isolate despite the government’s lifting of the public health emergency for the coronavirus pandemic.
The DOH, in a Department Circular, said home isolation for five days is required for COVID-positive people, with or without symptoms.
The DOH said patients can end the isolation if they’re “fever-free for at least 24 hours” without using medicine such as paracetamol and for moderate to severe COVID-19 infections, isolation is needed for at least 10 days from the start of symptoms.
All COVID-19 positive cases should wear a well-fitted mask for 10 days, the DOH added.
“Wearing masks is no longer mandatory but not prohibited,” the DOH further said, referring to public transportation. It added that wearing face masks is still recommended especially in crowded or poorly ventilated spaces, especially for the elderly, the immunocompromised, pregnant women, the unvaccinated, and symptomatic individuals.
The DOH still recommended the continued use of face masks in health facilities.
The DOH meanwhile reported that the positivity rate for COVID-19 in the National Capital
Region (NCR) decreased to 2.7 percent as of July 29, lower than the 3.3 percent reported a week before, OCTA Research Group Fellow Dr. Guido David said on Monday.
“Low positivity rates (were) measured in Bulacan (3.2 percent), Cavite, (3.8 percent from last week’s 17.6 percent), La Union, (3.2 percent), Pampanga (4.5 percent), Quezon (2.4 percent) and Rizal (2.1 percent),” he said over Twitter.
“Upticks observed in Batangas, Isabela, Tarlac, Zambales,” he added.
Other provinces where the positivity rate declined include Bataan (from 12.6 percent to 7.8 percent), Benguet (from 11.6 percent to 6.2 percent), Cagayan (from 12 percent to 8.3 percent), Camarines Sur (from 19.4 percent to 16.8 percent), La Union (from 3.5 percent to 3.2 percent), Laguna (from 5.5 percent to 5.2 percent), Oriental Mindoro (from 10 percent to 7.5 percent), Palawan (from 8.4 percent to 6.4 percent), Pampanga (from 6 percent to 4.5 percent), Pangasinan (from 8.7 percent to 6.2 percent), Quezon (from 3.7 percent to 2.4 percent), and Rizal (from 5.2 percent to 2.1 percent).
As of July 30, the Department of Health logged 167 new cases bringing the overall tally to 4,172,920 with 4,427 active cases.
About 269 new recoveries were recorded which increased the total number to 4,101,900. Ten new deaths were reported so the total number of COVID-19 fatalities increased to 66,592.