THE LATEST: Delta variant in the Philippines

For the third time this month, the Philippines broke its own record of highest single-day tallies since the pandemic started, after the Department of Health recorded an additional 19,441 COVID-19 cases on Saturday, Aug. 28.

The DOH bulletin shows that there is a total of 1,935,700 infections with 7.4% or 142,679 active cases.

They also reported that 167 patients lost their lives, bringing the death toll to 33,008 or 1.71%. Meanwhile, the survivor count is now 1,760,013 or 90.9% of the total, after 19,191 others have recovered from the virus.

The total excludes data from three laboratories that failed to submit their reports on time, the DOH added. These laboratories contributed an average of 1.3% of tested samples and 0.2% of positive individuals in the last 14 days.

The Philippines broke two records on Saturday, Aug. 14 after logging its second highest number of new COVID-19 cases reported in a day with 14,249, and breaching the 30,000 death toll mark.

According to the Department of Health (DOH), the nationwide tally is now 1,727,231 with 5.7% or 98,847 active cases. 95.9% of the active cases have mild symptoms, 1.4% have severe symptoms, 1% are asymptomatic, 0.95% are in moderate condition, and the remaining 0.8% are in critical condition.

The DOH also reported that the death toll crossed the 30,000-mark with 233 more persons succumbing to the coronavirus. Meanwhile, 11,714 others have recovered.

As per the DOH, the total excludes data from four laboratories that failed to submit their reports on time.

The Philippines witnessed its highest single-day tally for COVID-19 cases after the Department of Health (DOH) logged in 12,021 new cases on Wednesday, Aug. 11.

The DOH also reported 9,591 new recoveries, and 154 new deaths.

The Health Department also said the positivity rate is at 21.9% positivity rate for the second straight day, based on testing 38,478 individuals.

Currently, the total confirmed COVID-19 cases is now at 1,688,040—with 81,339 active cases.

The Philippines saw its highest single-day tally for COVID-19 cases in four months after the Department of Health (DOH) recorded 11,021 new cases on August 7, Saturday.

Saturday’s figure marks the second straight day with infections over 10,000. The DOH also reported 162 additional deaths that day, making yesterday the third straight day with over 100 fatalities.

DOH also said the positivity rate is at 19.1 percent, based on testing 56,636 individuals.

"We are already feeling the effects of the Delta variant in our country," DOH undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said in a public briefing on Saturday. "Based on our projections, these cases will continue to rise."

Currently, the country has a total of 1,649,341 confirmed infections—76,063 of which are active. 450 of these cases are linked to the Delta variant.

Viergeire also remarked that the spike of cases might be due to the highly infectious Delta variant, which has been detected in all areas of Metro Manila. She also said the government is “now acting as if there is already community transmission of the Delta variant.”

In a statement on July 27, the Department of Health (DOH) said there is no surge of COVID-19 cases in the National Capital Region (NCR) despite the rising cases in the region.

“While there is an observed increase in cases, there is no definitive evidence of a surge in the National Capital Region,” the DOH said. “DOH, however, is closely monitoring daily trends and is immediately flagging areas with increases in rates of transmission based on two-week growth rates, in affected population as per average daily attack rate and/or health care utilization.”

Although the DOH did not mention any independent research group, they pointed out that independent experts should be more careful in issuing statements about the country’s COVID-19 situation.

Earlier on Tuesday, OCTA Research Group said that the reproduction rate of cases in NCR has climbed to 1.33 from 0.6 and suggested a “circuit breaker” lockdown in the National Capital Region (NCR).

“The DOH noted the observations of independent expert groups but maintains that such observations should be carefully verified,” the health department said. It added that the statement from the research group may cause “more panic and fear.”

“While we acknowledge the differences in the metrics and methods of analysis used by these independent groups, we share the same goal to keep the case numbers down and improve the healthcare system of the country,” DOH explained in the statement.

There are 119 Delta variant cases in the country as of writing.

There are now 119 detected cases of the COVID-19 Delta variant in the country, with 24 so far of the total unvaccinated according to the Department of Health (DOH).

Yesterday, the DOH reported detecting an additional 55 cases of the more transmissible Delta variant in the country based on the latest genome sequencing by the University of the Philippines-Philippine Genome Center and the University of the Philippines-National Institutes of Health.

In a briefing today, DOH Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said that of the total Delta cases detected so far, 24 were not vaccinated, four cases received two doses, five received one dose, while 86 are for verification.

Of the four who received two doses, three had mild symptoms while one is asymptomatic. Of the five who received one dose of the vaccine, three were mild cases while two were asymptomatic.

Two out of the three casualties from the Delta variant were also unvaccinated according to Vergeire.

Vergeire then again urged the public to get vaccinated.

“Dito makikita daw na vaccines work, bumaba din ang number ng healthcare workers na nagkakasakit ng COVID,” Vergeire said in an online briefing.


“Get yourselves vaccinated kasi it will help you protect against different variants of COVID.”

The Department of Health (DOH) has recorded 12 more local cases of the Delta variant of COVID-19, bringing the total active cases to 37.

The 12 local Delta active cases are in Central Luzon (6), Metro Manila (3), CALABARZON (2), and Bicol Region (1).

The DOH said that all cases have been tagged as recovered but their “outcomes are being validated by our regional and local health offices." According to the DOH, they will “implement enhanced response immediately in the areas where these cases have been detected” and with the “premise that there may be ongoing local transmission already.”

Health authorities also reported additional 187 Alpha variant cases, 142 Beta cases, and 12 P.3 variant cases. —Hannah Mallorca

The Department of Health (DOH) recorded 7 active cases out of 35 Delta cases in the country, Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said in an interview with CNN Philippines July 20.

“For these 35 total cases in the country, we have three who have died, and then we have seven whom we discovered are still active for now,” Usec. Vergeire said on The Source.

Vergeire clarified that the Delta variant cases are local cases, not local transmissions. “The difference between local cases and local transmission would be, these local cases we have right now are kind of sporadic, they are in different areas and (have) different timelines for getting infected.”

“When you say local transmission, there is already an evidence of linkage between and among these individuals who were positive with the Delta variant,” she said.

The seven local Delta active cases are in Manila, Cagayan de Oro and Misamis Oriental; they are now in isolation and being closely monitored by their local government.

Usec. Vergeire said the DOH is still going to implement the existing quarantine restrictions in the Delta variant-affected areas.

“Whatever protocols we have right now, we just need to intensify them,” she said.

According to Vergeire, further decisions for possible new quarantine restrictions are to be announced by the IATF on Thursday, July 22.  — Kirsten Hallie Santos

There are now three people who died in the Philippines after contracting the more transmissible COVID-19 Delta strain according to the Department of Health.

These three recorded cases are a 63-year-old male crew of the MV Athens who died on May 19, a 78-year-old female from Baybay Antique who died on May 30, and a 58-year-old female from Pandacan who died on June 28.

The DOH last Friday reported the detection of 16 additional cases of the Delta variant in the Philippines, bringing the total to 35.

The three casualties are already among the 35 recorded infections of the delta variant in the country. 

DOH Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire told DZMM Teleradyo earlier today that the government has been preparing for the entry of the Delta variant since it was first reported to have triggered an outbreak in India.

Vergeire said the DOH has talked with the Department of Trade Industry in asking local manufacturers to help boost the country’s oxygen supply. During the height of the Delta-triggered outbreak in India, a record number of casualties were due to lack of oxygen supply.

“Currently our existing oxygen supply is sufficient, but we need to add more so we can be prepared,” said Vergeire.

“Our hospitals are now guided that they should be expanding their beds already. Our local governments have been guided also that they should intensify their PDITR (prevent, detect, isolate, treat,reintegrate) response,” added Vergeire.

During the televised Laging Handa news briefing of PTV early today, Dr. Jose de Grano of the Private Hospital Association of the Philippines said that they have already expanded their bed allotments for COVID-19 to as much as 30%.

“Problem lang is nurses as hospitals are short-staffed. If dumami ang moderate and critical COVID-19 cases, mahihirapan and private and government hospitals dahil need na ng assistance,” said De Grano.

To ward off another feared surge of COVID-19, De Grano said the public should continue with the vaccination and to observe minimum health protocols.