‘COVID-19 deaths only 1.5% of Philippines mortality in 2020’

MANILA, Philippines — Deaths due to COVID-19 represented a small percentage of the total mortality in the Philippines last year, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) reported.

Latest data from the PSA showed that preliminary number of registered deaths from January to December 2020 reached 601,811.

This was lower than the total deaths of 620,414 in the whole of 2019. Of the total number of deaths last year, only 1.5 percent is due to COVID-19.

Data from the Department of Health showed that COVID-19 deaths reached 9,244 as of end-December.

During the initial phase of the pandemic last year, COVID-19 fatality rate was high because of still limited knowledge about the virus and problems with testing capacity.

With increased testing, the number of confirmed cases grew but most had mild symptoms, which resulted in fatality rate falling to less than two percent now.

PSA said the months of July, August and September recorded higher deaths at 54,300 (9.7 percent growth), 56,620 (12.6 percent growth) and 53,709 (3.2 percent growth), respectively.

These months also saw the highest COVID-19 deaths last year with 258 deaths being the highest recorded on a single day, according to DOH.

Further, the National Capital Region posted 83,980 deaths in 2020, up 6.8 percent from the 78,604 deaths the previous year. Metro Manila has been the epicenter of COVID-19.

PSA said increases were recorded in 15 of 17 Metro Manila cities and municipalities, with the highest increase recorded in San Juan at 17.3 percent.

Significant increases were also reported in Pasig at 12 percent and Makati and Paranaque at 10.9 percent each.

Meanwhile, declines in the registered deaths during the period were recorded in Navotas and Mandaluyong.

In terms of absolute total deaths, however, Quezon City still registered the highest number in NCR at 18,378 or 21.9 percent of the total.

Manila recorded the second highest with 12,767 registered deaths while Caloocan came in third with 10,058.

The three cities comprised nearly half of the total registered deaths last year at 49.1 percent.

On the other hand, Pateros still had the lowest number of deaths registered in NCR, with 456 deaths or 0.5 percent of the total.

Most of the deaths in the Philippines last year were caused by the most common causes including heart diseases, neoplasms that may include cancers, cerebrovascular diseases, pneumonia, diabetes mellitus, hypertensive diseases, chronic lower respiratory infections, respiratory tuberculosis, other heart diseases and genitourinary diseases.