By Analou De Vera The number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in the Philippines has soared past 1,000, the Department of Health (DOH) reported on Saturday afternoon. The DOH said it recorded 272 new COVID-19 patients, the biggest single-day increase since the outbreak began last January, taking the total number of cases in the country to 1,075. Fourteen new deaths among COVID-19 patients were recorded, bringing the death toll to 68. The new deaths were all elderly people aged between 60 to 86 years old. All of them were Filipino nationals. The DOH said some of them had underlying medical conditions such as hypertension, diabetes mellitus, chronic kidney disease, cardiac dysrhythmia, renal disease, dyslipidemia, asthma, hypothyroidism, and acute kidney injury. The latest fatalities were Patient 382, a 63-year-old woman from Quezon City; Patient 648, a 71-year-old man, whose residence is still for validation; Patient 391, an 80-year-old woman from Manila; Patient 522, a 61-year-old woman from Pasig City; Patient 730, an 86-year-old man from Quezon City; Patient 676, a 64-year-old man from San Juan City; and Patient 677, a 60-year-old man from Caloocan City. Also included are Patient 393, a 74-year-old woman from Quezon City; Patient 729, a 67-year-old man from Quezon City; Patient 731, an 82-year-old man from Quezon City; Patient 604, a 60-year-old man from Manila; Patient 277, a 72-year-old woman from Bulacan; Patient 635, an 80-year-old woman from Paranaque City; and Patient 581, a 79-year-old Filipino-American woman from Taguig City. Meanwhile, four more patients have recovered from COVID-19, bringing the total number of recoveries to 35. They are Patient 163, a 55-year-old man from Quezon City; Patient 19, a 46-year-old woman from Pasig City; Patient 235, a 30-year-old man from Mandaluyong City; and Patient 11, a 72-year-old man from San Juan City.