​Covid watch (4)

PHILIPPINES - In Brief 26 Mar 2021 by Romeo Bernardo

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The surge in covid19 cases continued this week with the daily new cases reaching another high of 9,838 today. The 7d average was 7,846 this week, up another 50% from last week and more than doubling in a span of 12 days. Metro Manila accounted for about half of the total. Most worrisome, health facilities are filling up with 39 out of 159 Metro Manila hospitals reaching critical levels (over 85% capacity) and some, reporting full capacity. Increased allocation of existing capacities for covid19 is helping to keep overall isolation and ward bed occupancies at “safe” levels (below 60%) but ICU bed occupancy in the nation’s capital has reached 70%, the high-risk category. Overstretched healthcare workers are also starting to suffer burnout.The Inter-Agency Task Force on the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF) imposed this week a “bubble lockdown” for Metro Manila and 4 surrounding provinces (“NCR plus”) for a period of 2 weeks to Easter, limiting entry (including foreign travelers) and exit from the area to control the spread of infections. Within NCR plus, general community quarantine (GCQ) restrictions have been tightened, with only those between 18-65 years old allowed to go out, curfew hours imposed, indoor dining in restaurants and entertainment activities prohibited and the size of mass gatherings further limited. Public transportation remains at 50% capacity. While many would agree that the current bubble setup, which keeps most businesses open and supports worker mobility within NCR plus, is a smarter form of lockdown compared with the more stringent modified enhanced community quarantine (mECQ)[1], the rapid increase in new cases and demands on heal...