1,223 New COVID Cases as Decision on Alert Level 1 is Awaited

The Philippines on Saturday reported 1,223 new COVID cases, the eight straight day that the jump was below 2,000.

This brought total active cases to 53,934. The Department of Health also reported 128 deaths and 2,400 recoveries. Since the pandemic began in March 2020, the Philippines has reported a total of 3,660,020 cases with 56,351 deaths.

The DOH said the positivity rate out of 26,631 tests was at 5.1% meaning that for every 100 samples, at least five were confirmed to have the virus.

Current quarantines will expire on Feb. 28 and authorities are studying whether to downgrade Metro Manila and select areas to Alert Level 1 or the new normal, meaning restrictions on mobility and business will be largely eased.