OCTA research group warned about the recent spike in COVID-19 cases and the positivity rate in the Philippines.
OCTA research fellow Guido David said that the positivity rate reported on Wednesday was at 4.5 percent, based on test results of samples received from 27,615 individuals on Monday.
“Most likely it will continue to increase,” David told ABS-CBN News.
He added that the country will likely log at least 2,000 new COVID-19 cases daily after the new year.
Another OCTA fellow said that the increase in cases could be attributed to the holidays.
“The increase in cases is probably best explained because of the holiday and the Christmas season. There are many parties, and especially many children who are unvaccinated in these parties, walang mask, so not surprising that the case numbers went up,” Fr. Nicanor Austriaco said.
The country’s COVID -19 cases doubled on Wednesday as the Health Department reported 889 new infections.
The new infections doubled from Tuesday’s 421 new cases.
Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said that COVID-19 cases are expected to increase due to the holidays and lack of compliance with minimum health standards.
“We are continuously monitoring the situation, though we cannot still be certain that the increase in cases is due to the Omicron variant,” Vergeire told reporters.
