News Roundup 03 March 2021
Mar 03, 2021 • 4 min Read
Coronavirus cases in Philippines climbs to 582,223 with 1,783 new infections | PHILSTAR.COM – The country’s coronavirus disease caseload reached 582,223 Wednesday after the Department of Health recorded 1,783 new infections. Wednesday’s tally is the first time in six days that the DOH recorded fewer than 2,000 cases. Active cases accounted for 35,056 or 6% of the total. Of these, 94.8% are mild and asymptomatic cases. The death toll rose to 12,389 with 20 additional fatalities. Meanwhile, recoveries increased to 534,778 after 330 more people recuperated from the disease.
Lacking submission to FDA delays review of Sinopharm COVID-19 jab | PHILSTAR.COM – The country’s Food and Drug Administration has yet to evaluate the application of Sinopharm for the emergency use of its COVID-19 vaccine due to incomplete documents. The application of Southmed Pharma, which seeks to the firm’s distributor in the Philippines, lacked documents such as clinical trial results and certificate of good manufacturing practice, FDA Director General Eric Domingo said. The local company also needs to present proof it is the distributor of Sinopharm in the country. “Once they submit the documents, we will begin the evaluation,” Domingo said in a public briefing Wednesday. “Until we see scientific evidence, we see the population involved in their Phase 3 clinical trials, their experience in using the vaccine in other countries, that’s the only time we can give recommendation on the use of the vaccine,” he added. The drug regulator confirmed Tuesday the receipt of an online application seeking emergency use authorization for the jab developed by China’s state-owned pharmaceutical company.
DOH: Pasay City at ‘critical’ risk classification for Covid-19 | INQUIRER.NET – Pasay City is now at the “critical” risk classification for local government units (LGUs) due to its spike in Covid-19 cases, the Department of Health (DOH) said Wednesday. In an online media forum, the presentation of Dr. Alethea de Guzman, a medical specialist at the DOH Epidemiology Bureau, showed that the LGU risk classification of Pasay City is at the critical level. “‘Yung mga mutations, ‘yung increased transmissibility, nakikita natin sa Pasay na nakakaranas talaga sila ng mabilis na pagtaas ng kaso,” she also said. (The mutations and increased transmissibility can be seen in Pasay that has been experiencing a rapid increase in cases.) According to De Guzman, the two-week growth rate of Covid-19 cases in Pasay City is at 386 percent, while the average daily attack rate is at 24.7 per 100,000 population. But despite the increase in coronavirus cases, De Guzman said the healthcare utilization in the city remains at the safe zone at 46 percent. “Sa Pasay City po nakikita natin na 91 percent of the barangays are now affected, but what’s really good about Pasay is they have instituted a lot of actions already,” she added, citing strict lockdowns and active case finding implemented in the city. De Guzman earlier said that four of the six cases of the South African variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus that causes Covid-19 are from Pasay City.
Groups heed Robredo’s call for community work, hold feeding program | Manila Bulletin – Shortly after Vice President Leni Robredo asked her supporters not to spend on printing tarpaulins and streamers for her yet unsure 2022 presidential bid, her supporters heeded that call and engaged in community work. They, however, said that they will remain supportive of her if she decides to run for president next year. Harvey Keh, the lead convenor of the Kaya Natin! Movement for Good Governance and Ethical Leadership, said that “many #TeamLeniRobredo volunteers are setting up community feeding programs as a response to (the) VP’s call to help our kababayans.” Calling it hashtag #TulongHindiTarp, translates to “help not tarp,” 10 more groups of Robredo supporers are set to conduct a feeding program in various areas nationwide on March 13. The tarp is in reference to presidential daughter and Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio’s tarpaulins and streamers that hang in several key cities in the country. The materials urging her to run for president were supposedly printed and distributed by her supporters. Those who want to volunteer can contact Jover Laurio, also known as the blogger behind Pinoy Ako Blog, a known critic of President Duterte. On her social media accounts, Laurio posted photos of a feeding program Robredo’s volunteers organized. In one post, a volunteer named Peter said that a taho (sweetened fresh and silken tofu) vendor sold them the whole container for only P1,000 instead of P1,500 when he learned that it was for a project under Robredo’s name. “Ambag daw niya (He said it’s his contribution),” he said, referring to the taho vendor.
