By Patrick Garcia and Khriscielle Yalao

Several cities in the eastern part of the National Capital Region (NCR) has been placed under moderate risk for Covid-19 by the Department of Health (DOH) on Thursday, Sept. 29.

"Nakikitaan natin ang National Capital Region na patuloy ang pagtaas ng kaso, pero hindi pa siya dun sa significant levels. Pero nakikita natin na 13 out of the 17 areas in National Capital Region ay pumalo na sa moderate risk classification. Kaya ang NCR ngayon ay nasa moderate risk case classification (We are seeing a continuous increase in Covid-19 cases in the National Capital Region but it is not yet on significant levels. However, we are seeing that 13 out of 17 areas in the National Capital Region are already under the moderate risk classification, hence, NCR is now under moderate risk case classification)," DOH officer-in-charge Ma. Rosario Vergeire said in a press briefing.

The cities on the eastern part of NCR included in the list are Pasig City, Marikina City, San Juan City, Makati City, and Mandaluyong City.

The Manila Bulletin has gathered the latest Covid-19 data of the LGUs as well as the necessary steps and programs they are taking to mitigate the spread of Covid-19 in their respective areas.

Pasig City

Although Pasig City is under the moderate risk classification, the Covid situation in the city is manageable.

The City Health Department (CHD) recorded a 3.5 per 10,000 attack rate of the Covid-19 virus this week (Sept. 26 to 30). This is lower than the 7.7 per 10,000 reported last week (Sept. 19 to 23) during their previous executive committee and local health board meetings.

"As for admissions for healthcare utilization, Pasig does not reach 50 percent ," the CHD said.

Majority of the admissions in their facilities are for non-Covid diagnosis, it added.

Data from the Covid Referral Center, as of Thursday, Sept. 29, indicated an 82 percent occupancy rate. 43 percent of admitted patients are adults, and 57 percent belong to the pediatric age group.

Around 64 percent of the admitted patients currently have negative status. Meanwhile, 31 percent are confirmed positive, and five percent are probable cases.

The Pasig City local government remains steadfast in its Covid vaccination efforts, sustaining its daily vaccination program, and adding the barangay-based caravan vaccination (CaraVacc).

The local government also partnered with the Department of Health (DOH) in its national PinasLakas vaccination drive.

They brought the PinasLakas program to promote booster vaccination to high school students on Aug. 23. Two additional vaccination sites were opened for one day on Sept. 28.

As of Wednesday, Sept. 28, the city logged 291 active Covid cases, 85,941 recoveries, and 1,642 deaths. Pasig has a total of 87,874 confirmed cases.

San Juan City

The San Juan City local government reported 111 active Covid-19 cases and 22,533 recoveries from Sept. 19-25.

It added that 236,143 have been vaccinated with their first dose while 234,766 have been fully vaccinated against the virus as it continues to ramp up its efforts in increasing the number of inoculated individuals especially with the return of face-to-face classes and easing of Covid-19 restrictions in the NCR.

On Sept. 15, San Juan City Mayor Francis Zamora announced that the city continues to lead in the Covid-19 vaccination program of all local government units (LGUs) in the NCR as of Sept. 12.

According to the Department of Health’s (DOH) Resbakuna data, San Juan City had already fully vaccinated 236,073 adults, equivalent to 243.35 percent.

A total of 10,574 individuals aged 5-11 years-old have also been vaccinated by the LGU against the virus. This is equivalent to 91.47 percent.

San Juan City also leads in the number of boosted adults against Covid-19 after inoculating 96,855 individuals with their first booster shot, equivalent to 101.07 percent.

On Sept 7, the mayor said the city government will set up vaccination sites in all barangay halls which will offer primary and booster shots to all San Juaneños.

The local government made the move to bring San Juan’s vaccination program to more people, especially to those who are incapable of going to the primary vaccination sites, such as persons with disabilities and senior citizens.

On Aug. 15, he underscored the importance of getting vaccinated and boosted against the virus.

“Well, we can see still that even fully vaccinated individuals get Covid, but what we should look at really is the severity of their condition. Let’s not focus just on the number of cases but let’s look at how many are severe, how many are critical, how many are mild to asymptomatic,” Zamora noted.

“Our hospital utilization rate is also low, where majority of Covid-19 patients in our hospitals are actually residents from other cities and provinces,” he added.

“We have gone to the extent of going house-to-house for our booster vaccination. In fact, I have acted as an ambassador for the vaccination program. I believe as mayor, it is my duty to push for a high vaccination rate. This is something we have achieved. We remain to be number one in terms of number of fully vaccinated individuals in relation to our target population and also in the administration of the first booster,” the mayor said.

In the same month, the city government also opened satellite Covid-19 vaccination sites in all 13 public schools to ensure that students and residents are protected against the virus amid the reopening of face-to-face classes.

“San Juan City continues to vaccinate our population against Covid-19 to make sure our constituents are protected against the virus. We are now administering booster shots to qualified populations and will also give primary series to those who recently qualified, like our children,” Zamora said.

“The vaccination of children is not compulsory. However, we want to encourage the parents to have their kids vaccinated against Covid-19 so they are protected against the ill effects of the virus. To make sure the vaccine is accessible, we will set up satellite Covid-19 vaccination sites in all our public schools in the city,” he added.

Makati City

According to data from the Makati Health Department (MHD), the city has recorded 215 active Covid-19 cases and 59,936 recoveries as of Sept. 29.

It added that a total of 573,035 individuals have been vaccinated with their first dose of the vaccine while 556,682 have been fully vaccinated. There are also 295,831 residents of Makati boosted against the virus.

In August, the city government started inoculating the laity and regular parishioners in all its parishes and churches as it continues to ramp up its efforts against Covid-19 and the more contagious Omicron subvariants.

According to the city government, it has started a series of vaccination drives in churches since Aug. 14 after to protect the laypeople and parishioners. The inoculation drive was first launched at St. Joseph the Worker Parish.

Aside from vaccinating the city’s laypeople and parishioners, Makati City also launched different vaccination drives in its public markets and public utility vehicle (PUV) terminals.

On Aug. 3, a total of 104 members of various transportation groups were given the Covid-19 vaccine by the city government in the three terminals in Makati — Guadalupe-Buting TODA/JODA, Guadalupe Pateros MACDA, and MAYATODA as of Aug. 1.

It added that the three sites were opened for the city’s vaccination drive to make them more accessible to pedicab, jeepney, tricycle, and taxi drivers in the city and keep them safe from the virus, most especially with the detection of the more transmissible Omicron variants which may cause re-infection and even evasion from the vaccine.

The city government also brought its Covid-19 vaccination drive to public markets on Aug. 4. The vaccination site at Bangkal Market B1 is the first to be opened to ensure the safety of its vendors and customers.

Makati City Mayor Abby Binay said that aside from the Bangkal Market B1 site, two more market-located vaccination sites were also opened on Aug. 5. These are located in Barangay Poblacion Market on J. Villena Street and Sacramento Market in Barangay Olympia.

“Bukas ito para sa lahat ng nais magpabakuna mula 9 a.m. hanggang 4 p.m. (These sites are open from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.),” Binay said as she reminded vaccinees to bring their vaccination ID and a valid ID.

The mayor had earlier announced that the city government is ramping up the Covid-19 inoculation capacity of barangay health centers by transferring the vaccination sites to barangay health centers, which will also help those who are incapable of traveling to other Bakuna Makati sites such as senior citizens and persons with disabilities (PWD).

Mandaluyong City

On its latest Covid-19 tally, the Mandaluyong City Health Office (CHO) said that the city has deployed 1,381,295 vaccines as of Sept. 27. In this number, 559,702 individuals have been vaccinated with their first dose of the vaccine while 543,722 have been fully vaccinated.

Besides the regular Covid-19 vaccination drive, Mandaluyong City Mayor Ben Abalos said the city’s vaccination program is in line with the PinasLakas COVID-19 Vaccination Campaign DOH in making booster shots accessible, safe, and free.

Under the new campaign, local government units (LGUs) will make use of a settings-based approach in their vaccine deployment such as offering booster doses in offices, schools, places of worship, markets, factories, plaza, malls, public transport terminals, and other areas in the community.

The city government recently partnered with Rockwell Business Center Sheridan and held the Jabs on Jobsite to deliver booster shots to employees of Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) companies.

A similar partnership was also made with San Miguel Corporation where a pop-up vaccination center was set up at the company’s headquarter in Ortigas Center last Sept. 14.

During the opening of classes for school year 2022-2023, the city government also put up vaccination centers in public schools to deploy vaccines to students.

Marikina City

Regardless of an increase or decrease in cases, the local government of Marikina City continues its daily Covid-19 vaccination program at the Marikina Sports Center during the weekdays.

Since July, the local government has partnered with the Department of Health (DOH) for their PinasLakas program.

The public information office (PIO) has yet to release new Covid-19 case bulletins.

However, last July 20, the city health office (CHO) said they have vaccinated around 146 percent of the general population. 71 percent of those got their first booster jabs, and 14 percent had their second booster shot.

Around 125 percent of senior citizens and those belonging to the A2 category are fully vaccinated.

Marikina City Mayor Marcelino “Marcy” Teodoro had previously observed that majority of Marikina citizens still opt to wear masks despite the voluntary mask mandate in outdoor settings.

The other cities in the list of DOH under the moderate Covid-19 risk are Quezon City, Taguig, Manila, Pasay, Parañaque, Las Piñas, Muntinlupa, and the Municipality of Pateros.