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The World Health Organization warned the highly contagious Delta variant of COVID-19 could lead to a worse surge in the country as the Department of Health said it is now on heightened to prevent the spread of the dangerous strain.
“It is going to be infecting people far easier and faster than what we saw during the April to May surge affecting the NCR if the Delta variant starts spreading in the community,” WHO country representative Dr. Rabindra Abeyashinghe said.
On April 2, the country logged an all-time high of 15,310 new infections. The surge that began in March prompted the government to place Metro Manila and four surrounding provinces – Cavite, Laguna, Rizal and Bulacan – under hard lockdown or Enhanced Community Quarantine.
The DOH on Friday called on local governments to enforce strict border controls to prevent the spread of the dreaded Delta variant.
“All of us are on heightened alert now,” said Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire.
“All local governments were informed and all regional offices were told that they need to closely watch our borders for the Delta variant,” she said.
She said recommended measures include stricter border control, compliance with minimum health standards, and the speedier vaccination of priority groups eligible to receive COVID-19 vaccines.
The WHO said the Delta variant is present in over 80 countries.
Elsewhere in the world, Central Sydney and its popular eastern beaches around Bondi were ordered into lockdown Friday as authorities try to contain an expanding outbreak of the Delta variant.
The Israeli health ministry reimposed a requirement Friday for masks to be worn in enclosed public places following a surge in COVID cases since it was dropped 10 days ago. The head of Israel’s pandemic response task force, Nachman Ash, said the rise in cases was likely due to the highly contagious Delta variant first seen in India.
Africa is facing a vicious coronavirus resurgence, with unprecedented hospital admissions and fatalities pushing health facilities to the brink as the continent falls far behind in the global vaccination drive. The Delta variant, first detected in India, has so far been reported in 14 African countries, making up the bulk of new cases in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda, according to the WHO.
The European Center for Disease Prevention and Control warned the Delta variant could soon account for 90 percent of new coronavirus cases in the EU.
On Thursday, the OCTA Research Group said the Delta variant, first detected in India, could cripple the country’s health care system because of its more infectious nature.
OCTA fellow Ranjit Rye warned that the Delta variant, which he described as a game changer, could lead to a surge of COVID-19 cases.
Rye warned also that Filipinos should not be complacent and must follow minimum public health protocols.
As of June 21, the country has reported a total of 17 cases of the Delta variant but all of them were detected at the country’s borders.
OCTA Research also urged the government to do more testing and hire more contract tracers to prevent the community transmission of the more contagious variant.
The Philippines logged 6,812 new COVID-19 cases on Friday, bringing the total number of infections to 1,385,053, the DOH reported.
The DOH reported 116 new fatalities, bringing the COVID-19 death toll to 24,152.
The DOH also reported 2,867 new recoveries, bringing the total recoveries to 1,305,608.
Active cases stood at 55,293, of which 90.8 percent were mild, 4.6 percent were asymptomatic, 1.3 percent were critical, 1.9 percent were severe, and 1.35 percent were moderate.
The DOH also reported that, nationwide, 57 percent of the ICU beds, 46 percent of the isolation beds, 44 percent of the ward beds, and 36 percent of the ventilators, were in use.
In Metro Manila, 42 percent of the ICU beds, 40 percent of the isolation beds, 33 percent of the ward beds, and 30 percent of the ventilators, were in use.
The DOH said it would allocate additional vaccines from 25 percent to 30 percent in 10 areas outside of the National Capital Region experiencing a surge in COVID-19 cases.
Malacañang on Thursday identified 10 areas that would be part of the priority in the distribution of COVID-19 vaccines.
Palace spokesman Harry Roque said new priority areas would comprise “Metro Manila Plus 8 Plus 10” which would cover the following: Bacolod City, Iloilo City, Cagayan De Oro, Baguio City, Zamboanga City, Dumaguete City, Tuguegarao City, General Santos City, Naga City, and Legazpi City.
The distribution priority was previously limited to “NCR Plus 8” that is composed of Metro Manila, Metro Cebu, Metro Davao, Bulacan, Batangas, Cavite, Laguna, Pampanga, and Rizal.
Deputy Speaker Rufus Rodriguez on Friday expressed gratitude to the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF) for sending ventilators to Cagayan de Oro.
On Thursday, Presidential Spokesman Harry Roque, Jr said that IATF was sending “ventilators to boost the city’s hospitals’ capacity to aid seriously ill patients.”
At the same time, Rodriguez, representative of Cagayan de Oro’s second district, thanked President Rodrigo Duterte for ordering that more vaccines be delivered to areas in Mindanao where there is a high incidence of COVID-19. With AFP