COVID-19 cases in Philippines reach 531,699 as deaths near 11,000

MANILA, Philippines — The number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in the country climbed to 531,699 Thursday, with 1,590 new infections recorded.

The number of people who are still undergoing treatment or quarantine stands at 32,775 or 6.2% of the total. Nearly 95% of these are mild cases.

Fifty-five more patients died from the respiratory illness, raising the fatality count to 10,997.

The Department of Health also reported 249 new recovered patients. To date, 487,927 people in the Philippines have survived COVID-19.

What’s new today?

• Belgium-based Janssen Pharmaceutica is set to start the clinical trials of its COVID-19 this week, the Department of Science and Technology said Thursday. Chinese firms Clover Biopharmaceuticals and Sinovac Biotech are expected to hold their clinical trials within the month or next month.
• The government will allocate P362 million for the country’s genome sequencing efforts, Cabinet Secretary Carlo Nograles said. Genome sequencing is used to check for the presence of COVID-19 variants. The DOH earlier said the amount would cover supplies of reagents and testing kits as well as other logistical requirements.

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