Independent research group OCTA on Wednesday, Sept. 22, flagged Isabela, Cagayan, Benguet, Laguna, and Bataan as "provinces of major concern" due to "critical" levels of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) incidence rate, ICU utilization, and positivity rate in these areas.
Based on OCTA's monitoring from Sept. 15 to 21, Isabela logged the highest COVID-19 one-week growth rate at 158 percent.
Meanwhile, Benguet registered the highest average daily attack rate (ADAR) or incidence rate per day of 53 cases per 100,000 population.
Benguet was followed by Cagayan with an ADAR of 37.79, 36.43 in Isabela, 30.25 in Bataan, and 25.69 in Laguna.
The utilization of ICU beds for COVID-19 cases was also critical in the five provinces--94 percent in Isabela, 87 percent in Cagayan, 90 percent in Benguet, 87 percent in Laguna, and 92 percent in Bataan.
OCTA also noted that the COVID-19 positivity rate or the percentage of PCR tests that yielded a positive result, in the five provinces remain critical--50 percent in Cagayan, 40 percent in Benguet, 43 percent in Isabela, 38 percent in Laguna, and 30 percent in Bataan.
Meanwhile, hospital bed occupancy for COVID-19 cases in Laguna (73 percent) and Bataan (84 percent) were still not critical but were already "high."
In Isabela, Cagayan, and Benguet, hospital bed occupancies were at a critical level at 90 percent, 87 percent, and 96 percent, respectively.
Meanwhile, several provinces registered negative COVID-19 growth rates over the past week.
These are Cavite (-20 percent), Laguna (-20 percent), Rizal (-8 percent), Bulacan (-19 percent), Batangas (-2 percent), Davao del Sur (-12 percent), Pampanga (-2 percent), Cagayan (-1 percent), Iloilo (-17 percent), and Cebu (-9 percent).