The number of new Covid-19 cases in Metro Manila continued to rise, after the Department of Health recorded 1,600 new infections on Sunday Sept. 25, which is higher than the peak of 1,502 cases on Aug. 7, the independent OCTA Research Group said in its latest monitoring.
The one-week Covid-19 growth rate in Metro Manila also increased to 25 percent on Sept. 25, which is almost double the one-week growth rate of 13 percent on Sept. 18, OCTA Research fellow Dr. Guido David said in an update shared on Twitter on Monday, Sept. 26.
Moreover, David noted that the capital region’s reproduction number—the average number of secondary infections by each infected individual—also increased from 1.21 on Sept. 15, to 1.30 on Sept. 22.
Metro Manila’s seven-day positivity rate, which refers to the number of individuals who yielded positive results from among those who have been tested for Covid-19, also rose to 18.5 percent on Sept. 24, from 15.7 percent on Sept. 17.
“This has already exceeded the positivity rate of 17.5 percent on August 5, 2022,” David said.
Meanwhile, he pointed out that the healthcare utilization for Covid cases in Metro Manila remained “low” at 36 percent.
“Cases are expected to increase further, but we expect hospital bed occupancy to remain at low levels,” David said.