DOH reports record number 55,204 COVID recoveries, but deaths by the hundreds in last 3 days

COVID-19 critical cases still rising as of Sunday, April 11

This photo taken on April 6, 2021 shows a man wearing personal protective equipment walking into a makeshift ward built for COVID-19 patients at a hospital in Manila. – More contagious variants of the coronavirus have been blamed for a record surge in infections in Metro Manila that has overwhelmed hospitals and sent the national capital region into lockdown. (Photo by JAM STA ROSA / AFP)

(Eagle News) – The Department of Health reported at least 55,204 recoveries from COVID-19 bringing down the active coronavirus cases in the country from the Saturday’s record-high of 190,245 to Sunday’s (April 11) number of 146,519.  But new deaths added since Friday, April 9, are still in the hundreds per day, with the last two days registering at least 200 deaths daily.

The 55,204 recovered is one of the highest, if not the highest number of recoveries reported in a single day. Before this, the highest number of recoveries reported in a single day was on April 4, when the DOH reported 41,205 recoveries that day.

With this record number of recoveries, the percentage of active cases went down from Saturday’s 22.3 percent to Sunday’s 16.9 percent. The percentage of recoveries went higher however at 81.3 percent on Sunday, April 11, compared to Saturday’s 76 percent.

COVID-19 situationer as of April 11, 2021. Courtesy DOH

-Surge in COVID-19 active cases –

But DOH figures show continuing surge in new COVID-19 cases especially in Metro Manila and CALABARZON region. For three consecutive days, new COVID-19 cases added were more than 11,000.

The DOH announced 11,681 new COVID-19 cases on Sunday, April 11. On Saturday, April 10, new cases added were 12,674 cases. And on Friday, April 9, additional cases reported were 12,225.

 

COVID-19 situationer as of Saturday, April 10, 2021 (Courtesy DOH)

 

COVID-19 situationer as of Friday, April 9, 2021 (Courtesy DOH)

In Metro Manila, active COVID-19 cases were also at a record-high of 93,543 cases as of April 9, according to a BEAT COVID-19 situationer issued by the DOH on April 10.

According to this situationer report of DOH, active COVID-19 cases in various regions were still high showing that COVID-19 situation in the country is still critical and alarming: CALABARZON has 32,463 active cases; Central Luzon has 17,431 cases; Cagayan Valley has 8,639 active cases; Central Visayas has 5,574 active cases; Cordillera Administrative Region has 5,144 active cases; Ilocos region has 3,566 active cases; and Western Visayas has 3,069 active cases.

COVID-19 cases continued to surge especially in Metro Manila and surrounding provinces of Bulacan, Cavite, Laguna and Rizal which as of Sunday, April 11, are under Enhanced Community Quarantine (ECQ) but will be placed under Modified Enhanced Community Quarantine (MECQ) on Monday, April 12.

 

Courtesy DOH

-COVID deaths by the hundreds in last 3 days-

Additional deaths recorded continue to be in the hundreds.

On Sunday, April 11, at least 201 additional deaths were reported bringing the total COVID-19 fatalities at 14,945. On Saturday, April 10, additional deaths were 225. On Friday, April 9, new COVID-19 deaths reported were even higher at 401.

The percentage of deaths compared to total cases was still at 1.73 percent.

As of Sunday, ICU bed occupancy is still at a critical level in Metro Manila at 86 percent, the same situation as Saturday. On Friday, April 9, ICU beds in Metro Manila were reported 80 percent full. This trend shows increasing number of COVID-19 patients becoming critical and being sent to ICU in the last two days, based on this DOH data. In fact, there is an increase in critical COVID-19 cases on Sunday, April 11, with 0.5 percent of total cases reported as critical, compared to Saturday’s 0.4 percent.

Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque on Sunday, April 11, said that the additional of more ICU beds in the NCR plus areas was the consideration which the Inter-Agency Task Force on Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID) used to place Metro Manila, Bulacan, Cavite, Laguna and Rizal from the most stringent ECQ protocol to the slightly less stringent MECQ.

-164 ICU beds added in NCR Plus as gov’t tries to relieve pressure on health care-

Roque said that as of Sunday, there were 164 ICU beds added in the NCR plus area. At least 2,227 COVID regular beds for moderate to severe cases, and 765 isolation beds for mild and asymptomatic cases were also added to the health care capacity in Metro Manila and four surrounding provinces that comprise the NCR plus.

Roque said that with these additional COVID-19 beds, the health care utilization rate in NCR, Region 3 (Metro Manila), and Region 4-A (CALABARZON) had been lowered as follows: ICU bed capacity was lowered to 74.34 percent; Covid ward beds at 46.04 percent; and COVID isolation beds at 59.56 percent.

Courtesy PCOO (April 11, 2021 Press Briefing)
Courtesy PCOO (April 11, 2021 Press Briefing)

Before the Malacanang announcement to place the NCR plus areas under MECQ, the OCTA Research group recommended an extension of the ECQ for another week in these areas amid still rising COVID-19 cases.

 

(Eagle News Service)