public surveys

Record-high: 9 in 10 Filipinos worried about getting COVID-19

Bonz Magsambol

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Record-high: 9 in 10 Filipinos worried about getting COVID-19

PANDEMIC-HIT PH. People await their turn to board on the EDSA Carousel Bus at the Kamuning Bus Stop in Quezon City on September 13, 2021.

RAPPLER

The Social Weather Station survey also shows that more Filipinos fear 'the worst is yet to come' in relation to the coronavirus pandemic

A survey by the Social Weather Station (SWS) showed that a record-high of 91% or 9 in 10 Filipinos were worried about getting infected with the deadly coronavirus disease.

“The latest percentage of those worried about catching COVID-19 is 4 points above the 87% (correctly rounded) in June 2021 and ties the record-high level reached in November 2020,” the SWS said in its report on Tuesday, October 12.

The pollster said that compared to its previous surveys, “worry about catching COVID-19 is much greater than worries about catching previous viruses such as Ebola, Swine Flu, Bird Flu, and Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS).”

GRAPH FROM SWS

The SWS report noted that the percentage of those “a great deal/somewhat worried” about catching COVID-19 was highest in the Visayas (95%), followed by Mindanao (94%), Metro Manila (91%), and Balance Luzon (88%).

“Compared to June 2021, worry about catching COVID-19 rose from 90% in the Visayas, 90% in Mindanao, 85% in Metro Manila, and 85% in Balance Luzon,” the SWS said.

The survey was conducted from September 12 to 16, using face-to-face interviews of 1,200 adults, as the country experienced a record-breaking surge in COVID-19 infections driven by the highly contagious Delta variant.

The sampling error margins were ±3% for national percentages and ±6% for Metro Manila, Balance Luzon, the Visayas, and Mindanao.

On September 11, the Philippines saw infections of 26,303, the highest single-day COVID-19 tally since the pandemic began in March 2020.

‘The worst is yet to come’

The survey also showed that more Filipinos feared that “the worst is yet to come” in relation to the coronavirus pandemic.

The SWS survey found those fearing “the worst is yet to come” with the COVID-19 crisis rose from 39% in June to a record-high 60% in September, surpassing the previous worst of 57% in July 2020.

“The percentage of those fearing ‘the worst is yet to come’ with the COVID-19 crisis is highest in Balance Luzon (65%), followed by the Visayas (62%), Metro Manila (61%), and Mindanao,” the SWS said.

The release of the survey results comes as the Philippines expanded its vaccination program to adult general population nationwide which began on October 7.

On Friday, October 15, the Philippines will begin the vaccination of minors aged 12 to 17 with comorbidities in a pilot run approved by President Rodrigo Duterte. (READ: How the pilot run of COVID-19 vaccinations for minors will be done in Metro Manila)

As of Tuesday, the Philippines has 2,683,372 confirmed cases of COVID-19, with 39,896 deaths and 2,561,248 recoveries. Of the total cases, 82,228 remain active or currently sick. – Rappler.com

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Bonz Magsambol

Bonz Magsambol covers the Philippine Senate for Rappler.