Philippines logs 14,895 new COVID-19 cases, 2nd highest daily tally

GMA NEWS

The number of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) cases in the country rose to 1,791,003 on Thursday with 14,895 new infections, the second highest daily cases recorded since the start of the pandemic.

According to the Department of Health (DOH), only two laboratories failed to submit data on time.

The fresh cases brought the country’s active cases to 111,720, also the highest since April 21.

Of this, 95.3% are mild, 1.8% are asymptomatic, 1.3% are severe, and 0.7% are in critical condition.

The DOH also announced that total recoveries climbed to 1,648,402 after 8,248 more patients recovered from the illness while 258 new fatalities brought the death toll to 30,881.

A total of 387 duplicate cases were also removed from the total case count.

“Moreover, 2 cases previously tagged as recoveries have been validated to be active cases, and 180 cases that were previously tagged as recoveries were reclassified as deaths after final validation,” the DOH said.

Data from the DOH showed that 72% of the intensive care unit beds nationwide are in use while 53% of the mechanical ventilators are occupied.

In the National Capital Region (NCR), 73% of the ICU beds are being utilized by patients while 61% of the mechanical ventilators are in use.

Malacanang earlier said restricting the movement of unvaccinated people will only be considered once 50% of NCR’s population is fully vaccinated against COVID-19.

As of August 18, at least 41% of the eligible population in the region have been fully vaccinated against the illness.