Muntinlupa City is experiencing a slowdown in the transmission of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) cases as the number of active cases has decreased and the number of recoveries has increased.
City Health Office (CHO) chief Dr. Teresa Tuliao said as of September 30, there were only 213 active cases from 768 active cases at the beginning of the month. Doubling time for COVID-19 cases is currently at 16.5 days and the recovery rate has improved to 91.67 percent.
Doubling time is the number of days for COVID-19 cases to double in number. The standard rate of transmission should be at 7-30 days to be considered decelerating.
In the last five days from September 27 to October 1, Muntinlupa recorded 89 new COVID-19 cases, or an average of 17.8 cases per day. Patients who recovered increased from 3,727 on September 27 to 3,955 on October 1, or a difference of 228. Including deaths, the number of active cases has gone down from 344 on September 27 to 202 on October 1 or a reduction of 142 cases.
Tuliao attributed the easing of COVID-19 situation to the city’s holistic approach in curbing the virus including surveillance-isolation-treatment strategies, intensified targeted mass testing, and contact tracing.
Despite this, the city government has urged the public not to be complacent and continue following health protocols including wearing of face masks and face shields, as well as observing physical distancing.
The CHO has conducted swab tests to 16,777 residents as of September 30, equivalent to 3.1 percent of the city’s population and higher than the national target of two percent of the population.
Recently, the Muntinlupa City Council passed City Ordinance 2020-126 ordering the mandatory self-isolation, or admission to city isolation facilities if requirements for home quarantine are not met for anyone who has undergone COVID-19 swab testing.
Hospitals and healthcare facilities providing laboratory and diagnostic services are also mandated to submit daily COVID-19 related data to the CHO for disease surveillance and response.
Next week, Muntinlupa’s molecular laboratory for COVID-19 in Barangay Alabang and a new mega quarantine facility in Barangay Tunasan will be opened.