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MANILA, Philippines – The number of coronavirus cases in the Philippines climbed to 10,463 as of Friday, May 8, the Department of Health (DOH) reported.
This is the new countrywide total, after the addition of 120 positive cases on Friday. The number of fatalities also rose by 11, leading to a total of 696 deaths.
More people have recovered, with 116 new recoveries. In total, 1,734 persons have survived the disease, said the DOH.
Most of the new cases, 70%, were from Metro Manila. A little over one-fifth, 23%, were from Central Visayas (Region 7). The remaining 8% were cases from the rest of the country.
These new COVID-19 figures come a week before the possible lifting of lockdowns in Metro Manila, parts of Luzon, and major cities and provinces in Visayas.
The enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) in these areas is set to end next Friday, May 15. It’s up to the national government task force (Inter-agency Task Force on Emerging Infectious Diseases), to decide if the ECQ will continue or if some areas can be downgraded to general community quarantine (GCQ).
Metro Manila mayors will meet on Saturday, May 9, to finalize its recommendation to the national task force on whether the megacity should still be on ECQ after May 15. Some of them are pushing for another 15 days under ECQ, the stricted form of quarantine imposed by the government.
Metro Manila, the most densely populated region in the country, has reported the most number of cases and has been on lockdown for the longest, starting on March 15.
But numbers have been rising all over the country, in part due to the addition of more testing centers.
Areas that have seen a fewer count of new cases may be ready for GCQ, various government officials have said. – Rappler.com
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