Despite the Covid positivity rate in Metro Manila exceeding the World Health Organization standard of 5 percent, OCTA fellow Dr. Guido David said that the region is still managing through the situation well.
Metro Manila’s positivity rate, or the number of individuals who yielded positive results from among those who were tested for Covid-19, rose from 8.3 percent on July 2 to 10.9 percent on July 9.
“Kahit na tumataas ang positivity rate, kahit na more than 10 percent , hindi siya malala tulad ng nakita natin noong January na more than 50 percent (Even if the positivity rate is increasing, even if it is over 10 percent in Metro Manila, it is not as bad as what we saw in January 2022 when the positivity rate reached 50 percent),” David explained.
“In context, although tumataas ang positivity rate, it’s not at critical levels. It means we’re managing this well. Mukhang hindi naman natin kailangan mag-escalate ng alert levels (In context, although the positivity rate is rising, it’s not at critical levels. It means we’re managing this well. It looks like we don’t need to escalate the Covid alert levels),” he added.
David also said that he is not expecting the positivity rate in Metro Manila to further increase because the growth rate is already decreasing, currently at 31 percent.
“Hopefully, malapit na yung peak ng cases sa NCR pero hindi pa natin masabi yan sa ibang regions (the peak of cases in NCR is near but we can’t say that in other regions yet),” he said.
David projected that cases in Metro Manila may peak in mid-July, while it may peak by late July or early August in Calabarzon (Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal, Quezon) and Central Luzon.
He also pointed out that the positivity rates in other localities are still above 10 percent.
Antique had the highest rate at 18.9 percent, followed by Capiz with 17.8 percent.
Other areas with above 10 percent positivity rates are Laguna (16.2 percent), Cavite (16.2 percent), Pampanga (16.1 percent), and Rizal (15.7 percent).
David said that more areas may register higher positivity rates in the next few days as the virus spreads in other parts of the country.