Health Secretary Francisco Duque expressed his support in the extension of the Modified Enhanced Community Quarantine or MECQ in the NCR Plus bubble for one to two more weeks.
Duque said on Monday that the healthcare capacity has yet to significantly improve and that the utilization for intensive care units (ICU) in some cities remain at critical risk.
“Kung titingnan natin ang datos, tingin ko talagang kinakailangan ipagpatuloy ang MECQ for another week or two dahil nga ‘yung ating health system capacity, hindi masyadong nag-iimprove pa sa ngayon. Patuloy pa ring may ilang syudad ang may critical risk classification ang kanilang ICU capacity,” Duque said.
The current community quarantine in Metro Manila and nearby provinces will end by April 30.
The Department of Health reported an additional 8,162 new COVID-19 infections on Sunday, April 25.
With the new cases, the country nears the one million mark for confirmed COVID-19 cases at 997,523.
