More than 11,000 people have contracted measles while 189 have died of the disease in less than two months, the Health Department said Thursday.
The agency said it recorded 11,459 confirmed cases of measles with 189 fatalities from Jan. 1 to Feb. 20 this year, and that the latest figure was 2,000 cases higher than its last measles surveillance on Feb. 18.
In other developments:
• The Department of Health in Region 4A is rushing to get children vaccinated against measles as the number of confirmed deaths in the Calabarzon area due to the infection has risen to 73.
A report from Region 4A showed that from Jan. 1 to Feb. 22, 2019, 3,077 cases of measles infection were recorded in the region. Rizal had the highest number with 1,586 cases and 51 deaths, followed by Cavite with 437 cases and eight deaths.
READ: DOH outlay cut by P14 billion amid measles outbreak
Meanwhile, Laguna had 427 cases, Batangas 329 and Quezon 298.
• With at least one Filipino dying every hour from measles and more than 2,000 new cases being recorded every two days, the Anakalusugan party-list urged the Department of Health and local government units to step up its information dissemination and immunization campaign to arrest the spread of the measles outbreak across the country.
Based on the department’s latest measles surveillance on Feb. 20, the number of confirmed cases reached 11,459 with 189 fatalities from only 8,000 cases and 136 deaths on Feb. 18.
“The measles outbreak is seen to last until June. At the rate the number of cases and fatalities is increasing, we might surpass the total number of measles cases recorded last year at 18,407 by March,” Anakalusugan nominee Mike Defensor said.
READ: Get your kids vaccinated, parents told
The National Capital Region recorded the highest number of cases with 2,936 and 52 deaths, followed by Calabarzon with 2,635 cases and 61 deaths.
Most of the fatalities had no immunization against measles.
The Health department earlier declared an outbreak of measles in Calabarzon, Metro Manila, Central Luzon, Western Visayas, and Central Visayas.
