Philippines reports 279 more Delta cases ahead of easing curbs
MANILA, Philippines — Philippine health authorities on Monday said they detected 279 more cases of the highly transmissible Delta variant of COVID-19.
The new figures pushed the country's count to 2,068.
It came on the same day the government announced it would relax quarantine curbs in Metro Manila, which accounted for 51 of the additional Delta infections.
Officials said 245 are local cases, 21 are Filipinos returning from abroad, while 13 are still up for verification.
The Department of Health said apart from the capital region, new cases also came from:
- 35 - Calabarzon
- 24 - Central Luzon
- 22 - Northern Mindanao
- 19 - Bicol Region
- 17 - Ilocos Region
- 17 - Cagayan Valley
- 14 - Eastern Visayas
- 13 - Cordillera Administrative Region
- 10 - Davao Region
- 5 - Central Visayas
- 5 - Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao
- 1 - Zamboanga Peninsula
DOH added eight have died from the new Delta cases, two remain as active and two still being verified, while 267 have been listed as recovered.
"With the sustained increase in the detection of Delta variant cases," the agency said, "the DOH strongly reiterates to the public the strict adherence to the minimum public health standards as a crucial support to vaccination efforts to prevent further transmission of the COVID-19 and its variants."
Apart from Delta variant cases, there were also 29 of the Alpha, first detected in the United Kingdom, as well as 28 of the Beta, first seen in South Africa.
Some 13 individuals, meanwhile, tested positive for the homegrown P.3 variant, which the World Health Organization had downgraded to a variant "under alerts for monitoring."
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