President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. is isolating for five days after testing positive for COVID-19 for a third time, the Presidential Communication Office said Tuesday.
“The President remains fit to carry out his duties and will be continuing his scheduled meetings via teleconference. Updates on his health will be provided as available,” the PCO said in a post on Facebook.
The Department of Health said it recorded an uptick in COVID-19 cases, but assured the public there is still no overcrowding in hospitals.
The DOH is checking if the increase in coronavirus cases was due to the new “variants of interest” reported by the World Health Organization,” Health Undersecretary Eric Tayag said.
“We are expecting this matter since there is no restriction and many people are coming out this holiday season,” he added.
Mr. Marcos urged the public to take precautions against the virus, including getting vaccinated and practicing voluntary mask-wearing when entering crowded places.
Mr. Marcos first contracted the respiratory illness in March 2020 and then in July 2022.
Pasig City Vico Sotto on Monday also announced he tested positive for COVID-19.
“Annoying!!! Tested positive for COVID. I have mild symptoms, so I took an antigen test,” the mayor said.
Senator Cynthia Villar also confirmed contracting the illness last week but already testing negative in her antigen yesterday.
The DOH logged 1,340 new COVID-19 cases from November 28 to December 4, bringing the country’s active cases to 3,311.
The average daily COVID infections this week increased to 191 cases, around 10 percent higher compared to the daily average from November 21 to 27, the DOH said.