New DOH scheme on data extraction results in ‘slower rise’ in COVID-19 cases

Published Jul 2, 2020 5:11:15 PM

Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, July 2) — The Philippines now has 38,805 cases of the coronavirus disease, after 294 more people contracted the virus, according to the Department of Health.

This is the lowest single-day increase since June 5, when health officials logged 244 infections.

The agency said Thursday that 52 of the new infections are “fresh” cases or were detected in the last three days, while 242 were part of the validation backlog.

The decrease in additional cases reported may not necessarily mean a slower COVID-19 transmission rate in the country, however, as the DOH explained that it may be due to the change in data extraction time.

In a virtual media briefing, Health Spokesperson Ma. Rosario Vergeire said that the data extraction time is reduced to 19 hours (from 24 hours) to allow the epidemiology bureau more time to provide an in-depth analysis of the data released.

She added that this will be a temporary adjustment, and that the public can expect that reports provided by the department will be more comprehensive and timely in the coming days.

According to the Thursday case bulletin, 60 of the new cases came from Metro Manila, while 189 were logged in other regions nationwide. The remaining 45 are repatriated Filipinos.

Since it modified its COVID-19 reporting on May 28, this is the first time that the DOH lumped the Central Visayas region with other regions in the country.

Also listed in the latest report are another 235 survivors and four new deaths. These brought the total recoveries to 10,673, and deaths to 1,274.

Of the country’s tally of infections, 3,390 or around 9 percent are healthcare workers, according to the DOH. A total of 2,585 of them have recovered, while 34 have died, it added.

As for newly returned overseas Filipinos, 2,739 tested positive for the virus as of July, with one resulting in death, and 1,690 having recovered.

More Filipinos abroad have also been infected with COVID-19, with the Department of Foreign Affairs reporting a total of 8,614 cases. It also said an additional 17 recovered for a total of 5,148, while seven more died, raising the death toll to 561.

Globally, around 10.7 million people have caught the illness, with over 516,000 deaths, and nearly 5.5 million recoveries.

SOURCE: https://www.cnnphilippines.com/news/2020/7/2/PH-coronavirus-cases-updates.html