MANILA, Philippines – New COVID-19 cases in the country continue to break records as the Department of Health (DOH) reported 37,207 infections on Friday, January 14.

Friday’s cases bring the country’s total caseload to 3,129,512. Of these, 8.5% or 265,509 are active or currently sick.

The DOH also recorded 81 deaths. The total death toll due to COVID-19 in the Philippines now stands at 52,815.

Meanwhile, recoveries were up by 9,027 for a total of 2,811,188.

The DOH also reported a positivity rate of 47.3% out of 81,737 tests in its bulletin. These positive cases were added to the tally of confirmed cases only after further validation. This process helps ensure cases would not be recorded in duplicate, and that all test results had been submitted, explained the department.

A positivity rate of 47.3% means that nearly one in two people tested for COVID-19 turned out positive.

The DOH said all testing hubs were operational on Wednesday, January 12, while eight laboratories were not able to submit their data on time. The cases reflected in the bulletin were based on tests conducted two days ago.

Due to continued spike in cases, the Philippine government announced on Friday that it was extending Alert Level 3 in Metro Manila, Cavite, Baguio City, and 80 other areas until the end of January.

Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said new reported cases are not translating to a rise in severe cases or deaths due to COVID-19, likely due to higher vaccination rates and, according to studies, the mildness of the Omicron variant compared to Delta.

Several schools in the country have already suspended classes as groups called for a “health break.” – Rappler.com