The Philippines continues to see a rising number of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) cases as the daily reported infections are still over two thousand.
In its latest case bulletin, the Department of Health (DOH) reported that the nationwide tally is now at 80,448 after 2,110 new cases were confirmed in the last 24 hours.
The DOH said that active cases or people who are still receiving treatment currently stands at 52,406.
Of the newly announced cases, 1,345 were recorded in Metro Manila, 304 were from Cebu, 109 from Laguna, 66 from Negros Occidental, and 40 from Rizal province.
There were 39 more deaths, raising the country’s total number of fatalities to 1,932. The recoveries rose by 382 to 26,110.
The DOH assured that it is monitoring the vaccine development as well as studies on possible treatment for COVID-19.
“Vaccine developments around the world are still ongoing, some of which are still being evaluated for its safety and efficacy through Phase 1 or 2 clinical trials,” said Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire.
Early this month, the DOH said that the country is set to participate in the clinical trials for five candidate vaccines for COVID-19 from China and Taiwan. The DOH is also preparing for its participation in the World Health Organization (WHO) Solidarity Trials for Vaccine.
“Currently the situation for the solidarity trials for vaccines is still dynamic since the protocol will have to be released yet by the WHO,” said Vergeire.
“Aside from these collaborations, we are continuously looking at other potential vaccine candidates in the advanced clinical phases to maximize our opportunities in securing a potential vaccine,” she added.