Quarantine facilities for coronavirus disease (COVID-19) patients in the National Capital Region (NCR) or Metro Manila are now 75 percent full.
Isolation czar and Department Public Works and Highways (DPWH) Sec. Mark A. Villar made the revelation Tuesday, April 6 during the Laging Handa virtual press briefing.
The figure is more than a 10-percentage point uptick from the 64.48 percent occupancy rate that Villar reported on March 29.
"Kaya sa NCR kami nakatutok. At may plano na kami na magtayo pa ng additional quarantine facilities and ICU (intensive care unit) facilities dahil sa nakikita natin ngayon, kailangan pa madagdagan ang ICU capacity natin (That’s why we're focused on NCR. And we already have plans to erect additional quarantine facilities and ICU facilities because, based on what we're seeing, our ICU capacity must be increase)," he said.
Villar said that the occupancy level nationwide was a more manageable 15 percent--roughly the same rate he reported last week.
The country is grappling with an alarming surge in COVID-19 cases that has mostly been evident in NCR. The region, along with nearby provinces Bulacan, Laguna, Cavite, and Rizal have been under an enhanced community quarantine (ECQ)--the strictest lockdown protocol--since March 29.
Villar in the same interview said that the 110-bed modular hospital for COVID-19 patients at Quezon Institute would finally be opened later that day. He promised that more modular hospitals would be constructed in the coming days to address worries on the occupancy rate.
"Ang target sana namin, maging mas lower than 60 percent (Our target is to lower occupancy level to below 60 percent)," he said.