MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Health on Saturday confirmed 1,733 more COVID-19 infections, bringing the national caseload to 438,069.
Of the total number of cases recorded in the DOH's latest bulletin, 29,961 are classified active, which means these patients are still undergoing treatment or quarantine.
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The health department marked another 133 patients as recovered, bringing the total number of those who beat the virus to 399,582.
However, another 17 succumbed to the disease, pushing the country's death toll to a grim 8,526.
The country's positivity rate as of Dec. 5, 2020, stands at 4.6%. This is based on the 24,843 of people screened the day previous, 1,142 of whom tested positive.
According to the health department, the following areas posted the most number of COVID-19 cases:
- Davao City with 162 new cases
- Quezon City with 92 more infections
- Benguet with 80 new cases
- Rizal with 70 more infections
- Laguna with 66 new cases
Worldwide, 65.76 million people have contracted coronavirus, a staggering 1.51 million of whom died as a result.
The United Kingdom this week became the first Western country to approve a vaccine for general use, piling pressure on other countries to follow suit swiftly. Other nations are also moving ahead with plans to roll out the vaccines with the US expected to give a green light later this month.
In his second appearance at the United Nations General Assembly, President Rodrigo Duterte said it would be a “gross injustice” if low-income nations would be left behind in securing access to COVID-19 vaccines, renewing his call for equal access.
However, the World Health Organization warned nations against complacency, flagging what it called the erroneous belief that because vaccines are on the near-horizon, the COVID-19 crisis is over.
"Vaccines do not equal zero COVID," WHO emergencies director Michael Ryan said during a virtual news conference, adding that not everyone will be able to receive it early next year.
It has been 264 days since parts of the Philippines were first placed under lockdown, marking the longest community quarantine period in the world. — Bella Perez-Rubio