THE Department of Health yesterday pointed out that the lower new COVID-19 infections recorded on Tuesday does not mean that the peak of cases is already over.

Health Secretary Francisco T. Duque III said he could not yet see a downward trend of cases in the Philippines, adding that the lower cases recorded on Tuesday were due to the low testing output.

“Premature, kaya lang naman mababa ‘yan tandaan natin galing ‘yan sa Sunday testing output. Usually Sunday mababa and testing output,’’yung iba sarado and of course ‘yung iba maraming nag-isolate dahil may symptoms, ‘yung iba na-quarantine dahil na-expose so this is not an indication that the peak is over,” he explained.

Duque said the country may still be in the acceleration phase of the surge but assured that they are doing their best to contain the surge at the soonest time possible.

The health chief, however, noted that the DOH observed better figures in the number of deaths compared to the time of the Delta variant surge last year.

“It looks like the deaths now continue to go down compared to Delta. This is much… improved, this is an indication. When you talk about deaths, there is no [such thing] as improvement but I guess the numbers are better. I guess the correct way to say it is the numbers are better. Tuloy tuloy pa rin naman ang pagbagsak kasi nga mas mababa ang severe to critical cases therefore preventing hospitalizations and deaths,” he said.

Duque also confirmed that a spike in COVID-19 infections in regions outside Metro Manila has been observed by the health agency and urged local officials to intensify the vaccination process in their respective areas, adding that the health and safety protocols must always be followed.

“Yeah tama ‘yun, Regions IV-A, III, now I think even Region I and II are also registering spikes in cases and that is why I call upon our regional directors of the DOH, the DILG, the local government units in these areas to ramp up, more aggressively, their vaccination of their citizens. At the end of the day it’s really going to be a vaccination pa rin, proven against severe and critical cases and preventing hospitalization and deaths. And then of course, ‘yun nga ‘yung MPHS, magkasama talaga ‘yan…” he said.

Duque added that the increase of cases in other regions could possibly be due to the highly transmissible Omicron coronavirus variant, however, he noted that there are still other factors such as the holiday season wherein people usually attended gatherings.

On Tuesday, the country’s COVID-19 case count surpassed three million after the DOH reported 28,007 new infections, bringing the country’s tally to 3,026,473.

The top regions with cases in the recent two weeks were the National Capital Region (15,256 or 55%), Region 4-A (5,861 or 21%) and Region 3 (3,064 or 11%).

Meanwhile, a World Health Organization official said there is no need yet to escalate the existing Alert Level 3 in Metro Manila even amid the surge of COVID-19 cases.

Dr. Rabindra Abeyasinghe, WHO Country Representative to the Philippines, made the position less than three days before the Alert Level 3 prevailing in Metro Manila lapses.

“We are looking closely at Alert Level 3, and we saw significant reduction in mobility. And if yesterday’s reduction in numbers is any indication, maybe the current Alert Levels are adequate,” Abeyasinghe said, referring to the lower cases recorded Tuesday.

“Our projection is that the Philippines, even if current trends continue until the end of the month, the red line analysis is that we can manage the health care system until January 27 to 28, and with trends yesterday, we may even manage even beyond that,” he added.

The WHO official echoed an earlier Palace argument that the utilization of the healthcare system has yet to breach moderate risk level of 71%, thus the absence of the need to escalate the alert level in Metro Manila which is the epicenter of the COVID-19 pandemic in the country.

The Alert Level 3 protocol prohibits in person classes for basic education, karaoke and indoor entertainment, gatherings of people not belonging to the same household, casino/horse racing/cockfighting operations and contact sports except for bubble set up.

The WHO official stressed that individuals must ensure compliance with minimum public health standards of wearing face mask, observing hygiene and social distancing, as well as isolate or be in quarantine once they feel COVID-19 symptoms, to prevent further restrictions.

“By doing that, we reduce the risk of transmission rather than go on restrictions which have serious economic consequences. We should try to keep the economy open, until we see that the current Alert Levels are not working,” he said.