More than 6,000 returning Pinoys COVID-19 positive

MANILA, Philippines — Almost 300,000 Filipinos have returned from abroad and over 6,000 of them tested positive for the coronavirus disease 2019, according to the Department of Health (DOH).

Based on its “COVID-19 Philippine Situationer” released over the weekend, the number of COVID-positive ROF or returning overseas Filipinos reached 6,396 as of Aug. 28. Of the figure, 735 are currently admitted in hospitals. A total of 290,919 ROF arrived in the country since the start of the pandemic.

Among the COVID-positive ROFs, DOH said 5,350 have already recovered while five have succumbed to the infection. It added that a total of 284,893 ROFs were released from quarantine facilities.

The agency also reported that, aside from those that have returned from various countries, 1,941 cases of Filipinos staying overseas tested positive for COVID-19. This represents 19 percent of the 9,975 Filipinos abroad that were reported by the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) as COVID-positive.

Also, the DOH said 236 foreign nationals in the country have been confirmed positive for SARS-CoV-2, which causes COVID-19.

Meanwhile, the number of COVID-19 patients who recuperated from the infection soared to 157,403 as the DOH reported 22,319 additional recoveries yesterday.

The total number of COVID cases in the country also rose to 217,396 after 100 laboratories reported 4,284 new cases, 88 percent or 3,799 of which occurred within the past 14 days.

Fifty percent of the new cases or 1,906 are from the National Capital Region (NCR).

The DOH also recorded 102 additional fatalities, bringing to 3,520 the total COVID-related deaths in the country. Of the number, 78 occurred in August and half or 52 of the newly recorded deaths came from NCR.

Health Secretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said the DOH continues to monitor the health condition of COVID patients even after recovery to determine whether the infection has long-term effects.

She also said local health experts have yet to see sufficient  evidence of the virus’ lasting effects on COVID positive individuals.

Based on international reports, recovered patients still suffer from fatigue, headaches, vertigo, cognition difficulty, hair loss, cardiac issues and reduce cardiorespiratory fitness.

Among the confirmed coronavirus cases nationwide, 63.4 percent have recovered from the infection while 35 percent are active cases. The fatality rate is pegged at 1.6 percent.