Metro mayors push for extension even as PH logs lowest daily cases
Despite a decline in COVID-19 cases, Metro Manila will remain under Alert Level 2 until Feb. 28, the Palace said Monday.
Acting presidential spokesman Karlo Nograles said the 17 mayors of Metro Manila’s local governments signed a resolution recommending the national government’s coronavirus task force extend the Alert Level 2 status in the National Capital Region until the end of February. Nograles said 47 areas in Luzon, 20 in Visayas, and 31 in Mindanao were likewise placed under Alert Level 2.
The Palace official also said the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF) placed seven areas under Alert Level 3 until Feb. 28 – Iloilo City and Iloilo Province; Guimaras; Zamboanga City, Davao de Oro; Davao Occidental; and South Cotabato.
This developed as the Philippines on Monday logged 2,730 new COVID-19 cases, the lowest daily tally so far this year, bringing the total to 3,639,942, the Department of Health (DOH) reported.
Metro Manila tallied just 467 new cases on Monday, compared to 558 on Sunday, 562 on Saturday, 486 on Friday, and 600 on Thursday, February 10, the OCTA Research Group Reported.
The national positivity rate has declined to 10.7 percent, based on test results of samples from 28,620 people on February 12, the DOH reported.
Of the newly reported cases nationally, 2,627 or 96 percent occurred within the recent 14 days. Aside from Metro Manila, Calabarzon (330 cases) and Central Visayas (283 cases) were the top regions with cases in the recent two weeks.
The DOH reported 76,609 active cases across the country. This is the lowest number of active infections since Jan. 6 when 56,561 were reported.
Other areas under Alert Level 2 from February 16 to 28 are:
Luzon—Abra, Apayao, Baguio City, Benguet, Ifugao, Kalinga and Mountain Province in the Cordillera Administrative Region; Dagupan City, Ilocos Norte, Ilocos Sur, La Union and Pangasinan in Region I; Batanes, City of Santiago, Cagayan, Isabela, Nueva Vizcaya and Quirino in Region II; Bulacan, Angeles City, Aurora, Bataan, Nueva Ecija, Olongapo City, Pampanga, Tarlac and Zambales in Region III; Cavite, Rizal, Batangas, Laguna, Lucena City and Quezon Province in Region IV-A; Marinduque, Occidental Mindoro, Oriental Mindoro, Palawan, Puerto Princesa City and Romblon in Region IV-B; Albay, Camarines Norte, Camarines Sur, Catanduanes, Masbate, Naga City and Sorsogon in Region V
Visayas—Aklan, Antique, Bacolod City, Capiz and Negros Occidental in Region VI; Cebu City, Lapu-Lapu City, Mandaue City, Bohol, Cebu, Negros Oriental and Siquijor in Region VII; and Ormoc City, Tacloban City, Eastern Samar, Leyte, Northern Samar, Western Samar, Biliran and Southern Leyte in Region VIII
Mindanao—City of Isabela, Zamboanga del Sur, Zamboanga del Norte and Zamboanga Sibugay in Region IX; Bukidnon, Cagayan de Oro City, Camiguin, Iligan City, Lanao del Norte, Misamis Occidental and Misamis Oriental in Region X; Davao City, Davao del Sur, Davao del Norte and Davao Oriental in Region XI; General Santos City, North Cotabato, Sarangani and Sultan Kudarat in Region XII; Surigao del Norte, Surigao del Sur, Agusan del Norte, Agusan del Sur, Butuan City and Dinagat Islands in Region XIII (CARAGA); and Basilan, Maguindanao, Sulu, Tawi-Tawi, Cotabato City and Lanao del Sur in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao.
Under Alert Level 2, the second lowest in the new alert level system, certain establishments and activities are allowed at 50 percent capacity indoors for fully vaccinated adults (and minors, even if unvaccinated), and 70 percent capacity outdoors.
Under Alert Level 3, several establishments are allowed to operate at 30 percent indoor venue capacity but exclusively for fully vaccinated people, and 50 percent outdoor venue capacity as long as employees are fully vaccinated.
In-person classes, contact sports, fun fairs, and casinos are among the activities and establishments that are prohibited under Alert Level 3.
In cautioning against the lowering of restrictions, Health Undersecretary Myrna Cabotaje said some 2.5 million senior citizens and 220,000 people with comorbidities are not yet fully vaccinated against COVID-19.
“Perhaps we should take it slow. People might forget the minimum public health standards if we go to Alert Level 1,” Cabotaje said in Filipino.
“We need to raise figures for booster doses in NCR because these will offer added protection,” said Cabotaje, who heads the National Vaccination Operations Center.
Philippine Medical Association president Dr. Benito Atienza noted only 69,800 out of 15.8 million children ages 5 to 11 have received one vaccine dose as of Friday.
“What we need is to vaccinate everyone first,” he said when asked about a possible shift to Alert 1.
He said authorities should also exercise caution over calls to scrap the alert level system.
“We do not know the enemy, we do not know if there will be a new variant,” Atienza said.
Also, Malacañang on Monday said the IATF approved an earlier recommendation for recognition of the national Covid-19 vaccination certificates of Malaysia and the Republic of Ireland.
Nograles, also the Cabinet Secretary, said the IATF signed Resolution No. 161 to approve the recommendation of the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) to recognize vaccination certificates of the two countries “for purposes of arrival quarantine protocols, as well as for interzonal/intrazonal movement.”
“This is in addition to other countries/territories/jurisdictions whose proof of vaccination the IATF has already approved for recognition in the Philippines, and without prejudice to such other proofs of vaccination approved by the IATF for all inbound travelers,” he said in a statement.
Nograles said the IATF directed the Bureau of Quarantine, the Department of Transportation – One-Stop-Shop, and the Bureau of Immigration to recognize proof of vaccination of nationals from the two countries.
The IATF earlier approved the recommendation of the DFA to recognize the national Covid-19 vaccination certificates issued by Slovenia, Bahrain, Qatar, Switzerland, Hong Kong, Brazil, Israel, South Korea, and Timor Leste.
The highly transmissible Omicron variant in January drove a surge in infections in the Philippines.
Cases have since fallen to around 3,000 a day, while around 60 million of the country’s 109 million people have been fully vaccinated.
