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Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider National devider OCTA: Metro Manila's COVID-19 cases seen to further rise

OCTA: Metro Manila's COVID-19 cases seen to further rise

Published Aug 15, 2021 04:58 pm

The number of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Metro Manila is projected to further increase, according to an expert studying the pandemic in the country.

(FILE PHOTO / MANILA BULLETIN)

OCTA Research fellow Prof. Guido David estimated that the number of new cases in the National Capital Region (NCR) could exceed over 4,000.

According to David, Metro Manila recorded around 3,900 new infections on Aug. 15, the day that the Philippines logged more than 14,249 new cases.

“Medyo bumagal ng konti pero tumataas pa rin, at hihigit na tayo ng apat na libong kaso sa Metro Manila (It has slowed down a bit but it is still rising, and we could have more than 4,000 cases in Metro Manila,” David said in an interview over DZBB on Sunday, Aug. 15.

Metro Manila’s COVID-19 reproduction number rose to 1.90 on Aug. 14 from 1.85 on Aug. 13. This means that one person with COVID-19 is infecting up to two other individuals.

“Kailangan natin mapababa iyan para mapabagal ang hawaan sa Metro Manila (We need to lower that number to slow down the infection in Metro Manila),” David said.

He pointed out that the positivity rate in Metro Manila is now almost at 20 percent, adding that more coronavirus testing should be conducted to determine those who are infected and prevent more infections.

The expert laments that there are still many people outdoors despite the government’s implementation of the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) in the region.

He explained that it would take around three to four weeks before the number of cases starts to decrease.

“Pero at the same time, may concerning factor ay yung patuloy na pagtaas ng reproduction number. Iyan ang medyo concerning (But at the same time, a concerning factor is the continuous increase in the number of reproduction. That is quite concerning),” David said.

“Ibig sabihin, baka hindi ganong ka-effective yung intervention natin ngayon or baka dahil mas malakas kasing kalaban natin ang Delta variant (This means that maybe our intervention isn't as effective now or maybe it's because the Delta variant is a strong opponent), he added.

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