THE PHILIPPINES’ daily coronavirus cases is now among the lowest among southeast Asian nations, its health chief said on Tuesday night.
Health Secretary Francisco T. Duque III said at a taped Cabinet meeting that the country recorded 3.45 new infections for every one million people per day as of March 28, citing figures from Our World in Data.
He said the Philippines was followed by Cambodia with 3.61 cases, Myanmar with 4.52, and Indonesia with 17.82.
Mr. Duque said countries with the most number of infections include Brunei with 869.29, Vietnam with 1,724, Singapore with 1,295.34, Malaysia with 615.65, Thailand with 360.67, and Laos with 293.52.
The Philippines has experienced four waves of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) since 2020. It reported the highest single-day tally on Jan. 15 at 30,004.
The country, which currently remains at minimal risk from the coronavirus, recorded an average of 389 daily infections from March 21 to 27, lower by 24% than a week earlier.
The Philippine health agency said 484 of 3,204 intensive care unit (ICU) beds were in use as of March 27, while 4,613 of 27,547 non-ICU beds were occupied. There were 758 severe and critical admissions as of March 27.
The government is aiming to vaccinate more people as it plans to further relax COVID-19 restrictions.
Cabinet Secretary José Ruperto Martín M. Andanar said the country has fully vaccinated 65.81 million people as of March 29, while 11.95 million people have received booster shots.
He said 850,777 children aged 5 to 11 and 8.94 million aged 12 to 17 have been fully vaccinated against the coronavirus. — Kyle Aristophere T. Atienza