The COVID-19 death toll in the Philippines breached the 22,000-mark on Tuesday, June 8, as the Department of Health (DOH) reported 95 more fatalities due to the disease.

The latest deaths raised the death toll to 22,064.

The DOH also reported 4,777 new infections, bringing the country’s total caseload to 1,280,773. The number of reported cases every Tuesday is relatively lower due to testing laboratories that are either non-operational or are not able to submit data on time.

The cases reflected in the bulletin were based on tests conducted two days ago.

The DOH said that all laboratories on June 6 were operational but 10 testing hubs were not able to submit their data on time.

Meanwhile, recoveries grew by 7,122, raising the total recoveries to 1,202,257.

Of the total cases, 56,452 are active or currently sick.

In its report on Tuesday, the Octa Research team noted that Davao City has surpassed Quezon City’s new COVID-19 cases. From June 1 to 7, Davao City logged 213 cases on the average while Quezon City recorded 207.

Quezon City in virus epicenter Metro Manila is one of the cities that has been logging a high number of new infections. The DOH in May already flagged the uptick in COVID-19 cases in the Visayas and Mindanao.

The Octa team also noted that the capital region has resumed a “downward trajectory” of new COVID-19 infections after a “week of unstable trends.”

In a press briefing on Monday, June 7, Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said Metro Manila now accounts for only 13% of active COVID-19 cases nationwide, while the rest of Luzon accounts for 40%, the Visayas at 20%, and Mindanao at 25%.

The DOH on Tuesday also announced that the Philippines’ Food and Drug Administration has approved the use of Pfizer and BioNTech’s COVID-19 vaccine on adolescents aged 12 to 15, amending the previous emergency use authorization that allowed the use of the vaccine for those aged 16 and above. – Rappler.com