The number of active coronavirus disease (COVID-19) cases in Muntinlupa has increased to more than 2,400 with the Department of Health saying that the likelihood that the highly transmissible Omicron variant is already in communities is very high.
Data from the Muntinlupa City government showed that as of Jan. 12, there are 2,447 active COVID-19 cases in the city, an increase of 204 cases, or nine percent, from 2,243 recorded on Jan. 11.
On Jan. 12, Muntinlupa recorded 338 new COVID-19 cases compared to 359 new cases on Jan. 11.
This has pushed the city’s confirmed cases to 30,381. There are also 27,349 individuals who recovered from COVID-19 and 585 deaths in Muntinlupa.
The rise in COVID-19 cases resulted in an increase in hospitalization. The city-run Ospital ng Muntinlupa reached 100 percent full-bed capacity with 79 of its workers testing positive for COVID-19.
Ospital ng Muntinlupa announced its out-patient department will be closed starting Jan. 10 because of the COVID-19 situation except for limited obstetrics patients who will be pre-arranged by their doctors.
According to Dr. Edwin Dimatatac, hospital director, the hospital will shift to telemedicine to provide services to patients.
The COVID-19 situation has also affected the city’s vaccination campaign. The Muntinlupa COVID–19 Vaccination Program announced that starting Jan. 11, the Barangay Buli Health Center vaccination site will be closed because some of the staff needed to be quarantined.
The Muntinlupa City government has also reduced its on-site employees to about 50 percent as a preventive measure against transmission. Office staff are restricted from eating together and employees are required to wear face masks all the time.
Its treasury department has temporarily transferred from inside the Muntinlupa City hall building to the city hall quadrangle due to COVID-19 infections. Starting Jan. 13, treasury services will be conducted at the quadrangle.
Meanwhile, the Muntinlupa City Health Office (CHO) continues to conduct antigen and reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) tests in communities to identify people who have COVID-19.
Dr. Juancho Bunyi, CHO head, said this is to immediately isolate people who test positive for COVID-19 and prevent transmission.
The CHO has conducted 253 antigen tests of which 174, or 69 percent, tested negative while 79, or 31 percent, tested positive. Those who test positive need to undergo an RT-PCR test for confirmation.
During a media briefing last Jan. 11, Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said while the community transmission of the Omicron variant has not been officially established, “what is happening, the trend of the cases, on how cases double, on what symptoms are experienced by people, the likelihood that Omicron is already in our communities is very high.”
“Just like what we always say, we have assumed already from the start that Omicron has entered our communities,” she said.