Palace expects speedy recovery of PH economy

MANILA – Resuming the implementation of the national government’s ambitious “Build, Build, Build” infrastructure projects and easing the monetary policy would contribute to the faster recovery of the Philippine economy, Malacañang said on Tuesday.

In a virtual presser aired on state-run PTV-4, Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque expressed optimism about the country’s economic recovery after the lifting of the community quarantine in some areas nationwide.

Roque made the statement after Fitch Solutions Country Risk and Industry Research, in its report released Monday, projected that the Philippine economy would fall into recession this year due to the impact of the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic.

He said the Palace was not surprised by Fitch Solutions’ projection, as it already expects that the government’s implementation of quarantine protocols has hurt the country’s economy.

Roque, nevertheless, guaranteed that the government has already looked for ways to spur economic growth.

“Ang gobyerno naman po ay merong plano (The government has a plan),” he said. “Bababa po talaga ang ating ekonomiya pero tayo po ay tataas naman at inaasahan natin na mabilis ang ating pag-recover matapos po nitong mga quarantine (There will really be an economic slowdown but we expect our economy to recover fast after the quarantine).”

Fitch Solutions said it forecasts the Philippines’ full-year growth at -0.2 percent in 2020, lower than its May projection of 0.5 percent growth.

Roque said he expects a “V-shaped economic recovery” due to the strategies prepared by the National Economic and Development Authority and the Department of Finance.

A “V-shaped” economic recovery is characterized by a sharp decline in growth followed by a sharp recovery.

Roque said the “Build, Build, Build” program would help jumpstart the country’s economy.

“Unang-una po ay bubuksan natin ang ‘Build, Build, Build’ natin at ito po ay tinatawag na fiscal strategy, paggamit po ng national budget para po mag-create ng economic activities (We will resume the ‘Build, Build, Build’ operation. It is a fiscal strategy – using our national budget to create economic activities),” he said.

The national government is spending PHP1 trillion annually for the implementation of the “Build, Build, Build” program as it expects infrastructure projects to have a long-term economic effect.

Roque said the government would also relax the monetary policy to help the country’s economy recover faster.

“Binababa po natin ang interest rates. At saka yung mga liquidity requirements po ng mga bangko po ay ini-ease up po natin ang mga deposit requirement para mas marami po ang pera na umiikot sa ating ekonomiya (We lower the interest rates. We also ease up the banks’ liquidity, deposit requirements so more money would come in),” he said. (PNA)

Source: https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1102625

More OFWs undergo swab testing at Palacio de Maynila

MANILA – Hundreds of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) lined up for coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) testing Sunday at the Palacio de Maynila mega swabbing center along Roxas Boulevard.

They arrived aboard buses provided by Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) following strict health protocols and will be tested by the medical team of the Philippine Coast Guard and the Bureau of Fire Protection.

The Palacio de Maynila swabbing facility has 65 specimen collection booths. It started operations on Thursday.

“The government plans to increase the number of Covid-19 testing laboratories to a total of 78 by the end of the month. We expect this to ramp up the country’s testing capacity, hitting 30,000 daily tests by end-May,” national policy against Covid-19 deputy chief implementer Secretary Vince Dizon said in a statement.

Dizon is also president and chief executive officer of the Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA) and Presidential Adviser for Flagship Programs and Projects.

Dizon added the immediate goal in the next few days is to swab up to 25,000 seafarers and land-based OFWs, as well as overseas Filipinos.

The setting up of swabbing centers is part of the Test, Trace and Treat (T3) strategy to strengthen the country's capacity in Covid-19 testing.

The other mega swabbing centers are the Enderun Tent in Taguig City, Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City, and the Philippine Sports Stadium at the Philippine Arena in Bulacan.

The government estimates to conduct a total of 5,000 tests per day once all four swabbing centers are operational. (PR)

Source: https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1102427

Duterte floats ₱10-M reward for Filipino who can invent COVID-19 vaccine

President Rodrigo Duterte

Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, April 21) — President Rodrigo Duterte is pouring more funds into the search for a cure for COVID-19, promising a research grant for local scientists and a separate reward for anyone who can develop a vaccine.

"Dahil public enemy number one nga itong COVID-19 hindi lang dito sa Pilipinas kundi sa buong mundo, inanunsyo ng Pangulo na siya ay magbibigay ng pabuya na hanggang ₱10 milyon sa kahit sinong Pilipino na makakadiskubre ng vaccine laban sa COVID-19," Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque said Tuesday.

[Translation: Because we consider COVID-19 as public enemy number one not only here in the Philippines but also globally, the President announced that he is giving a bounty of up to ₱10 million to any Filipino who will discover a vaccine against COVID-19.]

On top of this, Duterte also pledged a "substantial" grant to the laboratories of the University of the Philippines and the Philippine General Hospital to boost efforts towards producing a cure for the deadly disease, Roque said. However, the amount was not disclosed.

PGH has been identified as one of the main referral hospitals for coronavirus patients.

Abroad, there are dozens of pharmaceutical firms racing against time in coming up with a viable treatment, although some experts say these will unlikely be in the market in the next several months. For now, doctors are trying to use medicines meant for other diseases on COVID-19 patients.

Several drug companies in the United States and China have started clinical trials for potential cures.

COVID-19 is a disease caused by a coronavirus called SARS-CoV-2, which is related to the virus that causes Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome but not as deadly. The disease is spread through small droplets from the nose or mouth when people infected with the virus cough or sneeze.

To prevent further infections, Duterte placed the entire Luzon under an extended lockdown which will expire on April 30, with no hints yet whether the strict stay-at-home rules will be eased or sustained for millions of Filipinos.

Currently, PGH doctors have been trying an experimental plasma therapy for patients in critical condition. Scientists are checking if they can tap the antibodies developed by a recovered person to help a struggling patient combat the infection. For this process, the plasma — or the liquid portion of the blood from someone who once battled the coronavirus — carries antibodies, which will be infused into a patient's system with hopes to boost the chances of recovery.

A number of recovered COVID-19 patients, including Senators Sonny Angara and Migz Zubiri, have donated blood to support this treatment.

FAST FACTS: Donating blood plasma for COVID-19 patients

The President earlier said that he would only lift the quarantine measures once an antibody cure for COVID-19 is ready for widespread use. He did not name which drug maker is behind this, but said that the treatment may be rolled out in the market as early as May.

Original Content here: https://www.cnnphilippines.com/news/2020/4/21/Duterte-reward-COVID-19-vaccine.html

COVID-19 TRACKER: AS OF APRIL 17, 2020 4:00PM PST

COVID-19 TRACKER: AS OF APRIL 15, 2020 4:00PM PST

Beijing tightens grip over coronavirus research, amid US-China row on virus origin

JUST WATCHED

US-China relationship worsens over coronavirus

Hong Kong (CNN)China has imposed restrictions on the publication of academic research on the origins of the novel coronavirus, according to a central government directive and online notices published by two Chinese universities, that have since been removed from the web.


Under the new policy, all academic papers on Covid-19 will be subject to extra vetting before being submitted for publication. Studies on the origin of the virus will receive extra scrutiny and must be approved by central government officials, according to the now-deleted posts.
A medical expert in Hong Kong who collaborated with mainland researchers to publish a clinical analysis of Covid-19 cases in an international medical journal said his work did not undergo such vetting in February.
The increased scrutiny appears to be the latest effort by the Chinese government to control the narrative on the origins of the coronavirus pandemic, which has claimed more than 100,000 lives and sickened 1.7 million people worldwide since it first broke out in the Chinese city of Wuhan in December.
Since late January, Chinese researchers have published a series of Covid-19 studies in influential international medical journals. Some findings about early coronavirus cases -- such as when human-to-human transition first appeared -- have raised questions over the official government account of the outbreak and sparked controversy on Chinese social media.
And now, Chinese authorities appear to be tightening their grip on the publication of Covid-19 research.
A Chinese researcher who spoke on condition of anonymity due to fear of retaliation said the move was a worrying development that would likely obstruct important scientific research.
"I think it is a coordinated effort from (the) Chinese government to control (the) narrative, and paint it as if the outbreak did not originate in China," the researcher told CNN. "And I don't think they will really tolerate any objective study to investigate the origination of this disease."
CNN has reached out to China's Foreign Ministry for comment.





Chinese President Xi Jinping inspects scientific research on the coronavirus during his visit to the Academy of Military Medical Sciences in Beijing on March 2.

Increased scrutiny

According to the directive issued by the Ministry of Education's science and technology department, "academic papers about tracing the origin of the virus must be strictly and tightly managed."

The directive lays out layers of approval for these papers, starting with the academic committees at universities. They are then required to be sent to the Education Ministry's science and technology department, which then forwards the papers to a task force under the State Council for vetting. Only after the universities hear back from the task force can the papers be submitted to journals.

Other papers on Covid-19 will be vetted by universities' academic committees, based on conditions such as the "academic value" of the study, and whether the "timing for publishing" is right.

The directive is based on instructions issued during a March 25 meeting held by the State Council's task force on the prevention and control of Covid-19, it said.

The document was first posted Friday morning on the website of the Fudan University in Shanghai, one of China's leading universities.

When CNN called a contact number left at the end of the notice, a staff member of the Education ministry's science and technology department confirmed they had issued the directive.

"It is not supposed to be made public -- it is an internal document," said the person, who refused to reveal his name.

A few hours later, the Fudan University page was taken down.

The China University of Geoscience in Wuhan also posted a similar notice about the extra vetting on Covid-19 papers on its website. The page has since been deleted, but a cached version of it remains accessible.

The Chinese researcher who spoke to CNN said the notice was issued a few days ago, adding that only Covid-19 research was subject to the additional checks.

David Hui Shu-cheong, a respiratory medicine expert at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, said he did not encounter any additional vetting when he and a team of mainland Chinese researchers published a clinical analysis of Covid-19 cases in the New England Journal of Medicine in February.

"The process was really simple then," he told CNN over the phone.

Hui said he was still revising the draft of the paper until 3 a.m. on the day it was due for submission, and the paper was sent to the NEJM by midday.

"There was completely no restriction at all," he said.

"I don't know if it is because some researchers published something that is considered sensitive domestically in China. (I'm) not sure if it is because of the controversy about the origin of the virus later, and the non-sensitive stuff becomes sensitive too."





Laboratory technicians test samples of the coronavirus at a lab in Hengyang in China's central Henan province.



Origin of the virus
In late December, Wuhan reported the first cases of the coronavirus, linked by authorities to a seafood market in the city. Scientists in China and the West have said the virus is likely to have originated in bats and jumped to humans from an intermediate host -- just like its cousin that caused the SARS epidemic in 2002 and 2003.
However, parts of Chinese social media and even the country's government appear to have launched a concerted campaign to question the origin of the virus.
Chinese officials and state media have repeatedly stressed that there has been no conclusion on the exact origin of the virus. Last month, Zhao Lijian, a spokesperson of the Chinese Foreign Ministry, promoted a conspiracy on Twitter that the virus had originated in the US and was brought to China by the US military.
In China, research papers on the coronavirus are already subjected to layers of vetting after they are submitted to Chinese academic journals, according to an editor at a Chinese medical journal.
Wang Lan, the editorial director of the Chinese Journal of Epidemiology, said all Covid-19 papers have to go through an approval process for "major topics" after being submitted to her journal.
"It has always been the case," she told CNN. "They have to be approved by three levels of organizations. It's a long process."
The Chinese researcher who requested anonymity said under the new restrictions, however, coronavirus research that contradicted the official narrative could be suppressed by Beijing.
"I think the importance is that the international scientific community must realize that any journal or manuscripts from (a) Chinese research institution has kind of been double-checked by the government," said the researcher. "It is important for them to know there are extra steps between independent scientific research and final publication."

CNN's Steven Jiang and Alexandra Lin contributed reporting.
Source:https://edition.cnn.com/

Covid-19 Testing in PH

Duterte to address the public anew

Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, March 30) — President Rodrigo Duterte will once again address the nation in a televised message on Monday.

The address is tentatively set at 4 p.m., his spokesperson Salvador Panelo said.

Duterte was advised on March 27 to undergo self-quarantine at his official residence in Malacañang Palace in Manila City after confirmed cases of coronavirus infection among some officials. He continues to work from home, monitoring the country's situation and giving the necessary orders, Senator Christopher "Bong" Go said. 

Luzon is entering its third week of enhanced community quarantine after Duterte placed the country's biggest island under lockdown to contain the spread of COVID-19.
 Source: cnnphilippines.com

Philippines' COVID-19 death toll jumps to 54, cases at 803

Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, March 27) — Nine more Filipinos have died from the coronavirus disease in the country, bringing the nationwide death toll to 54, the Department of Health reported Friday.

In its 4:00 p.m. bulletin, the DOH confirmed 96 new cases of the viral disease. The country now has a total of 808 cases. 

Three more patients have recovered from COVID-19, for a total of 31 recoveries.

Patients die before getting test results
Health Secretary Francisco Duque III has said cases are bound to increase as the government expands its testing efforts. Five government laboratories can now test COVID-19 samples.

Previously, the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine served as the only confirmatory testing laboratory for COVID-19 in the Philippines, resulting in a backlog.
Majority of the new fatalities died before their test results came out. Among them are a 75-year-old man from Quezon City, who died on March 19 but was confirmed positive for COVID-19 only six days later.

A 71-year-old woman, also from Quezon City, and an 83-year-old woman from Cavite province both passed away on March 17, but their families got their test results five days later.

Another patient, a 57-year-old man from Manila, died on March 18, and was confirmed to have had COVID-19 four days later, while a 62-year-old man from Manila died March 22, with his test results coming out the next day.

It's not clear how their remains were handled, since authorities mandate bodies of COVID-19 patients to be cremated within 12 hours from the time of death.

Other COVID-19 patients who have died include a 63-year-old man and a 72-year-old woman from Muntinlupa City, a 74-year-old man from Manila, and a 67-year-old woman from Quezon City.

The three patients who have recovered from COVID-19 are all from Metro Manila. They are a 48-year-old man from Taguig City, and two men from Pasig City, aged 25 and 51.


Global cases
Worldwide, COVID-19 has killed more than 24,000 people, mostly in Italy, although the outbreak began in Wuhan, China in December last year. Over 500,000 people have been infected, according to the Johns Hopkins University's COVID-19 global tracker.

Eight in ten, or around 80 percent, of infected patients experience "mild illness" and eventually recover from COVID-19, according to the World Health Organization. Some 15 percent experience severe illness while 5 percent were critically ill, the WHO said.

To prevent the spread of the virus, authorities are urging people to practice regular hand washing, cover their mouth and nose when coughing and sneezing, and avoid close contact with those who exhibit virus symptoms.

Source: cnnphilippines.com

S&R confirms Koko Pimentel shopped at BGC store on March 16

CCTV footage shows the senator shopping at S&R's BGC branch on March 16 when he was supposed to be in quarantine

QUARANTINE? The senator is confirmed to have broken his coronavirus quarantine at least twice – for an S&R run and later, to accompany his wife to the hospital. File photo by Angie de Silva/Rappler

MANILA, Philippines – Member shopping chain S&R confirmed on Thursday, March 26, that Senator Aquilino "Koko" Pimentel III shopped at their store in BGC, Taguig City, on March 16.

“It was confirmed that the senator was at S&R BGC on March 16, 2020. CCTV footage showed him checking out at counter 13 at exactly 1:59 pm,” S&R said in a statement posted on its official Facebook page.

The shopping chain issued the statement in response to a social media post that Pimentel – who had just tested positive for the coronavirus disease – was seen at S&R-BGC on March 16, when he was supposed to be in quarantine as a person under investigation (PUI) for the coronavirus.


"As a result, S&R employees who were in contact with the senator were already placed in quarantine. S&R BGC also took extra disinfection steps," the shopping chain assured its customers.
S&R also reiterated that it is taking precautions to prevent the spread of the virus, from the daily disinfection of stores, checking on their employees' health, and constant sanitation of areas in the store that are possible points of contamination.



Pimentel's S&R run was hours before Senate Majority Leader Juan Miguel Zubiri announced that he tested positive for the coronavirus.

Pimentel on Wednesday, March 25, announced that he tested positive COVID-19. He said he experienced flu symptoms on March 14 – two days after 12 other senators went on self-quarantine upon learning that a guest at a Senate hearing tested positive for COVID-19. (TIMELINE: When Pimentel tested positive for coronavirus)

Pimentel, who did not immediately go into self-quarantine, opted to work from home instead. He supposedly stayed in a room separate from his pregnant wife when he started having flu symptoms on March 14, and got tested on March 20, after had a fever as well.

Under the Department of Health protocol, the senator should have gone on a 14-day self-quarantine from March 14 to March 28 as he was already considered a person under investigation (PUI).

Pimentel's trip to S&R was the second confirmed instance when the senator broke his quarantine. Even before he got the test results for his coronavirus test, heaccompanied his wife Kathryna to the Makati Medical Center on March 24 because she was scheduled to give birth on March 25.

Pimentel found out that he tested positive for the highly-contagious disease while inside the hospital on Wednesday. He has since been criticized both by the medical community and regular citizens who have been in home quarantine to prevent the spread of the new virus.

The Makati Medical Center released a strongly-worded statement condemning Pimentel for exposing both patients and the hospital's medical workers to the virus. – Rappler.com

China to lift lockdown on Wuhan, ground zero of coronavirus pandemic

(CNN)China has announced it will lift the lockdown on Wuhan, the city at the epicenter of the coronavirus pandemic, on April 8, marking a significant milestone in its battle against the deadly outbreak.

The date comes more than two months after the city was first sealed off from the outside world, in an unprecedented bid to contain the fast spreading virus. Similar lockdown measures will be lifted Wednesday for other cities in Hubei province, of which Wuhan is the capital, provincial authorities announced Tuesday.
The easing of travel restrictions follows a significant reduction in new infections in Hubei, with new cases dropping to zero for five consecutive days from March 19 -- down from thousands of daily new cases at the height of the epidemic in February. On Tuesday, the province reported one new case in Wuhan, a doctor at the Hubei General Hospital.

Staff members line up as they prepare to disinfect Wuhan Railway Station on Tuesday, March 24.

Staff members line up as they prepare to disinfect Wuhan Railway Station on Tuesday, March 24.
The province has accounted for the majority of infections and deaths in China, with 67,801 cases and 3,160 fatalities reported as of Monday.
In a precursor to the types of measures that would later be introduced throughout the world, Wuhan, a city of some 11 million people, was placed under state-imposed lockdown on January 23, with all flights, trains and buses canceled and highways entrances blocked. Other cities in Hubei province soon followed suit, adopting similar restrictions.
The sweeping measures, which have affected more than 60 million Hubei residents, have been heralded in China as having allowed the country to turn a corner in its fight against the outbreak. In a major show of confidence, Chinese President Xi Jinping visited Wuhan on March 10, three months after the outbreak was first detected in the city.

Chinese President Xi Jinping waves to residents who are quarantined at home on March 10.

Chinese President Xi Jinping waves to residents who are quarantined at home on March 10.
But while the restrictions have slowed the spread of the virus, they failed to contain it. In the past week, there has been close to zero new local cases reported in China, with the focus shifting instead to stopping Covid-19 cases from being imported from overseas.
Globally, the total caseload has now passed 380,000, with more than 16,500 deaths, according to figures compiled by Johns Hopkins University, which is tracking figures from the World Health Organization and additional sources.

Easing restrictions
Starting from Wednesday, people in Hubei, except for Wuhan, will be allowed to leave the province if they have a green QR code on their mobile phones, the Hubei provincial government said in a notice on Weibo, China's Twitter-like platform.
Hubei has previously ordered all its residents to obtain the color-based QR code -- which comes in red, yellow and green -- and acts as an indicator of people's health status.
The colors are assigned according to the provincial epidemic control database: people who have been diagnosed as confirmed, suspected or asymptomatic cases, or people with a fever will receive the red color code; their close contacts will receive the yellow code; and people without any record in the database will get the green code -- meaning they're healthy and safe to travel.
On April 8, the easing of restrictions will be extended to Wuhan, where the coronavirus first emerged in December, and residents with a green QR code will be able to leave the city and the province.
Source: CNN

A general view shows a street in Wuhan on March 10

A general view shows a street in Wuhan on March 10.
Moreover, people from other parts of China will be allowed to enter Hubei and Wuhan if they can produce a green QR code, with no additional paperwork required, the notice said.
Businesses in Wuhan will also gradually resume operations, based on risk assessment, while the reopening dates for schools and universities remain to be determined, according to the notice.
'This is the day I've been waiting for'
Bo Hanlin, a Wuhan resident who has been confined to his home for two months, said he welcomed the news.
"This is the day I've been waiting for," he told CNN Tuesday.
Over the past week, there were already signs that the municipal authorities wanted to gradually return life to normal.
Some residents have been allowed to go back to work as long as their employers issue them a letter, Bo said.

People buy pork at the gate of a closed residential community in Wuhan on March 18.

The Wuhan government announced on Sunday that residents with a green health QR code and a letter from their employer will be allowed to go back to work, and only need to undergo temperature checks when they return home. All checkpoints within the city will be removed, and public transportation services will be gradually resumed, it said.

Lockdowns are being imposed around the world. China's example highlights the costs
Lockdowns are being imposed around the world. China's example highlights the costs
Bo, a photographer who runs his own studio, said he had not been able to return to work, as he does not have a company to issue him an employment letter.
Food delivery services have also gradually resumed over the past week, according to Bo, and some eateries inside residential communities have reopened.
But residents apart from those returning to work are still not allowed to leave their residential compounds, and supermarkets remain closed, he added.

A volunteer guards a temporary wall blocking a road in Wuhan on March 12.

For more than a month, Wuhan residents have been told to stay at home as the government escalated the lockdown measures -- they're not even allowed to go outside to shop for groceries, and instead have to rely on designated neighborhood committees to make group orders for daily necessities, often at a higher price.
For now, Bo said residents were still not allowed to go out grocery shopping, but he said the prices had started to come down, and there were now more choices for vegetables.
The Hubei provincial government announcement on Tuesday did not specify when the lockdown on residential communities in Wuhan will be lifted.
Bo questions why outsiders will be allowed to enter Wuhan, while many of the city's residents are still confined to their homes and residential communities.
"As a Wuhan resident, I feel the risk is still high. What if there is an imported case? We'll have to stay home again," he said.
CNN's Steven Jiang contributed reporting.

Philippines' COVID-19 cases surge to 552; 2 new recoveries, 2 new deaths listed

Members of the Philippine Army wearing Personal Protective Equipment (PPEs) prepare for deployment during the commemoration of Philippine Army’s anniversary at Fort Bonifacio in Taguig on March 23, 2020. Jonathan Cellona, ABS-CBN News

MANILA — The Philippines' number of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) cases surged to 552 on Tuesday, the Department of Health announced, amid growing clamor for a mass testing to determine how many Filipinos are really infected.

DOH reported an additional 90 new cases, a new daily high, as Luzon remained on lockdown in a bid to prevent the spread of the virus.

Of the total tally, two new patients have recovered, identified as PH130 and PH87, DOH said in its bulletin.

PH 130, a 21-year-old Filipino female from Davao de Oro who recently traveled to the United Kingdom and Qatar, was confined at the Davao Regional Medical Center, experienced symptoms on March 3 and was confirmed positive for COVID-19 on March 15. The patient, who has bronchial asthma, was discharged from the hospital on March 23 after testing negative of COVID-19.

The other recovery is PH87, a 76-year-old Filipino female from Quezon City who was exposed to a relative who contracted COVID-19 after visiting the United States. She was confined at the St. Luke’s Medical Center in Quezon City, first experienced symptoms on February 25. She was confirmed positive for COVID-19 on March 14 and was discharged from the hospital on March 22. She is both hypertensive and diabetic.

This brings the total number of recoveries to 20.

Two more deaths were however reported, bringing the total number of fatalities to 35.

The first fatality is PH215, a 71-year-old Filipino male from Quezon City who did not recently travel abroad or had exposure to a COVID-19 patient. The patient, who had hypertension and diabetes, tested positive for COVID-19 on March 18 and died on March 24 due to sever pneumonia, hypertensive cardiovascular disease and cardiac dysrhythmia.

The other fatality is PH239, a 76-year-old Filipino male from Cavite who also does not have known exposure to a COVID-19 patient. The patient, who did not also travel abroad recently, was diabetic. He died on March 14 but only tested positive for COVID-19 on March 20. His cause of death was recorded as heart failure, community-acquired pneumonia, myocardial infarction or heart attack, acute respiratory failure and COVID-19.

According to the Johns Hopkins University, there are now 381,000 COVID-19 cases worldwide. Of that number, 101,000 have recovered and 16,000 have died.

Source: www.abs-cbn.com

COVID-19 cases surge to 307 in biggest single-day increase since start of outbreak

Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, March 21) — The number of people with coronavirus disease in the country has jumped to 307, after 77 more have tested positive, the Department of Health said Saturday. This is the biggest single-day increase of cases in the country since the outbreak began in January.

DOH said five more people also recovered from the disease officially known as COVID-19.

This development comes shortly after the agency announced that another person died from COVID-19. A total of 13 people have recovered, while the death toll remains at 19.

Among those who have recently recovered were the couple considered to be the country’s first local transmission of COVID-19. Four out of five of the new recovered cases were also elderly patients aged 69 to 75, who are seen to be one of the most vulnerable to complications brought by COVID-19. Those who were previously cured of the disease were mostly younger — from 24 to 46 years old.

COVID-19 is a disease caused by a coronavirus called SARS-CoV-2, which is related to the virus that causes Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome, but is not as deadly, with the fatality rate standing at around three percent.

According to the WHO, around 80 percent of patients only experience “mild illness” and eventually recover. Some 14 percent experience severe illness while five percent were critically ill, it added.

Good personal hygiene practices such as washing hands properly with soap and water and keeping away from crowds can help prevent catching the virus and passing it on to others, health authorities say.

Source: https://www.cnnphilippines.com/

PH records 77 new cases of COVID-19; total at 307

A prototype misting chamber disinfects people entering Quezon City Hall on March 20, 2020 amid the enhanced community quarantine of Luzon. The low cost disinfection chamber or the "GOCLEAN Chamber," is
designed by engineers connected with Mapua University

MANILA (UPDATE) - The Philippines on Saturday confirmed 77 new cases of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), raising the country's tally to 307.

The Department of Health (DOH) also said that a 73-year-old woman from San Juan City, who had no recent travel history or exposure to a COVID-19 patient, had also died from the disease. She's the country's 19th fatality.

Meanwhile, 5 more people had recovered from COVID-19, bringing the total tally of recoveries to 13.

The health department said Saturday it would speed up testing for the virus, as more laboratories were opening up.

The government has also designated 3 state hospitals for COVID-19 patients as private facilities were getting overwhelmed with those diagnosed with the virus and those showing symptoms.

More details to follow.

Source: https://news.abs-cbn.com/news

PH now has 202 coronavirus cases; 3 more patients die

LOCKDOWN. A crowd of commuters wait along Ayala Avenue in Makati City on March 16, 2020 as the entire island of Luzon is put under lockdown due to COVID-19.

MANILA, Philippines (UPDATED) – A total of 202 patients have tested positive for COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus, as of 12 pm on Wednesday, March 18.

The Department of Health (DOH) released its latest bulletin at past 4:30 pm on Wednesday.
Earlier in the day, during the government’s “Laging Handa” press briefing aired on state-run PTV-4, the DOH announced that as of 11 am, there was a total of only 193 patients who had tested positive for COVID-19.

The latest figure, 202, means the number of additional patients who tested positive for COVID-19 jumped by 15 in a day. The DOH reported on Tuesday, March 17, that 187 people had caught the virus.

The DOH also reported that 3 patients with COVID-19 died, bringing the Philippines' total fatalities to 17.

MANILA, Philippines (UPDATED) – A total of 202 patients have tested positive for COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus, as of 12 pm on Wednesday, March 18.

The Department of Health (DOH) released its latest bulletin at past 4:30 pm on Wednesday.

Earlier in the day, during the government’s “Laging Handa” press briefing aired on state-run PTV-4, the DOH announced that as of 11 am, there was a total of only 193 patients who had tested positive for COVID-19.

The latest figure, 202, means the number of additional patients who tested positive for COVID-19 jumped by 15 in a day. The DOH reported on Tuesday, March 17, that 187 people had caught the virus.

The DOH also reported that 3 patients with COVID-19 died, bringing the Philippines' total fatalities to 17.

Patient 26: 34-year-old Filipino male from Camarines. He is one of the two repatriates from M/V Diamond Princess who tested positive. He had been confined at the Jose B. Lingad Memorial Regional Hospital.

Patient 13: 34-year-old Filipino male from Quezon City who had traveled from Australia. He had been confined at the Makati Medical Center.

President Rodrigo Duterte declared a state of calamity in the Philippines as cases of COVID-19 continue to spike.

Source: www.rappler.com