Cebu City COVID-19 situation alarming, daily positivity rate reaches 7%
CEBU CITY, Philippines — The COVID-19 situation in Cebu City is not looking good.
After reeling from a rapid rise in new cases on a daily basis, the city is dealt another curveball: a steadily climbing positivity rate in the past month.
In December 2020, the city regularly enjoyed a less than 1 percent positivity rate or the ratio between the number of positive cases to the number of individuals swabbed for a certain batch.
Yet in less than 30 days, the city has surpassed the World Health Organization (WHO) pandemic threshold of 5 percent with the most recent positivity rate now at a staggering 7.68 percent.
The positivity rate was the result of 99 positive cases out of 1,089 swabbed individuals on January 26, 2021, whose results were released on January 27.
Councilor Joel Garganera, the deputy chief implementor of the Emergency Operations Center (EOC), said he is concerned with this rising trend.
He said that this may still be brought by the intensified contact tracing and quick containment of positive cases and their contacts, but it also goes to show that the spread has been quicker in the past weeks.
He added that the cases are a reflection of the behaviors and movement of the people.
“People are moving and acting like COVID does not exist. Movement, that’s understandable because people have to work, but the behavior of the people. You always have to wear your face mask and face shield all the time especially in enclosed spaces,” said Garganera.
As the cases rise, the councilor said the health care system remains stable. Only 276 beds have been occupied in the major hospitals in the city and 525 beds remain empty.
However, the isolation centers have slowly been filling up with the New Oasis for Adaptation and a Home (NOAH) complex having only 50 beds left empty.
The Barangay Isolation Centers (BICs) in Mabolo, Zapatera, and Mambaling have been activated as well. These are complemented by private hospitals, which have been accredited by the Department of Health (DOH).
One of the biggest concerns of the EOC is the incoming Chinese Lunar New Year and Valentines Day. The councilor is urging the establishments to limit the number of customers.
Most of all, the EOC appeals to the public to maintain minimum health protocols so as to stop the rise of the cases and allow time for the currently active cases to recover. /rcg
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