More recoveries being reported in BARMM

COTABATO CITY (PNA) – Fourteen persons in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) who have been quarantined and isolated due to the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) have been released on Saturday.

Mohd Asnin Pendatun, speaking for the BARMM’s Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) on COVID-19, said the newly recovered patients brought the region's total recoveries to 555.

This, Pendatun said, translated to a 71 percent recovery rate from the cumulative 778 cases in the region since the pandemic was declared in March this year.

“Hopefully, more patients will go back home free of the virus,” he said in a radio interview here.

As the number of recoveries continues to rise, the number of new cases has slowed down a bit, Pendatun said.

On Friday evening, the Ministry of Health - BARMM reported that 19 new cases were added to the current COVID-19 count, raising the total number of confirmed cases in BARMM to 778, with 200 active cases.

Lanao del Sur and its capital city of Marawi account for most of the 19 new cases with Maguindanao only having two.

One patient from Lanao del Sur also died Friday, raising the death toll to 23.

To date, Lanao del Sur has the highest number of recorded patients with 409, followed by Maguindanao (113), Basilan (108), Sulu (18), Tawi-Tawi (10), and the 120 locally stranded individuals rescued by the regional government.

“We foresee a slow down in the number of new cases in Lanao del Sur and Marawi City after the national government approved the implementation of stricter quarantine protocols for the two local government units (LGUs),” Pendatun said.

The National IATF granted the request of the Lanao del Sur and Marawi LGUs to temporarily stop the “Hatid Tulong” program for returning residents in the two areas due to the current implementation of the modified enhanced community quarantine in the province.