If the hospitals in Metro Manila get overwhelmed with the continuous rise of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) cases in the region, it could be placed back to stricter quarantine measures, according to Malacañang.
In an online press briefing, Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque said that sterner community quarantine measures could be their possible action if medical institutions reach full capacity due to the surge of cases.
“We go back to stricter quarantine or provide more facilities,” he said.
READ ALSO: Duterte urges nation not to panic as Metro Manila placed on lockdown
The Department of Health (DOH), meanwhile, said that state hospitals in the region are not yet overwhelmed with COVID-19 cases, but critical care resources are at “moderate risk level” – with data showing that isolation bed utilization was at 62.18 percent already.
DOH Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire also noted that many of the hospitals claiming that they are reaching full capacity did not comply with the department’s requirement, stating that 30 percent of bed capacity must be allotted for COVID-19 patients.
As of this writing, DOH said that six areas in the country are seeing a rapid spike in COVID-19 cases recently. These include Cebu City, Cebu province, Mandaue, Lapu-Lapu in Cebu, Quezon City, and Manila.
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