Coronavirus Philippines Update: Death Toll At 33, Confirmed Cases Expected To Spike

The latest coronavirus statistics from the Philippines are 501 confirmed cases and 33 deaths as of Tuesday morning, according to Worldometers, a website that provides counters and real-time statistics for a variety of topics. The 82 new cases are the largest daily tally to date since the Covid-19 emerged as a global “game-changer”.

Beginning with China, the normal course of the disease has been a few weeks of a relatively low number of cases followed by a rapid acceleration of cases over the next 3 to 7 days. China’s peak came in mid-February. Italy is now at the top of that peak with the U.S. and other European countries following suit, reflecting the global trend.

It appears that the Philippines is also climbing toward a peak that might occur in the next few days assuming it follows the same overall trajectory of other countries.

Of interest to health authorities are the 8 newest fatalities. They were all males ranging in age from 56 to 89 years old. Most of them had some pre-existing conditions like heart disease, diabetes, and hypertension. The actual cause of death was the normal ones associated with COVID-19: septic shock, pneumonia, and acute respiratory distress. It was not reported if the men were smokers or were on any medications.

The number of deaths will continue to dominate the news headlines, but more attention is being given to the survivors of COVID-19 in the Asian archipelago. One who recovered is a 54-year-old Filipino male who contracted the virus in Thailand. He has hypertension and began to experience the symptoms of COVID-19 on March 6.

It is likely he contracted the coronavirus between Feb. 21 and 24 assuming a 10-14 - day incubation period. The man was not a confirmed case until March 13 and was released a week later March 21, meaning about 30 days for the entire disease process. The man is one of 19 survivors in the Philippines.

Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said during a televised DOH briefing that studies on the recovered have begun to look for commonalities. “In any illness, early detection is a factor so that the management of the patient is successful and there is a higher chance of recovery,” she said, adding that they would like to see the good practices of health workers in handling the 18 recoveries.

Lockdowns in Manila and other cities in the Philippines are becoming more commonplace, especially for older people and those whose health puts them at risk.

Another concern of most Filipinos is financial and many eyes in the Philippines are on developments in Washington D.C. where terms of a huge stimulus bill are being negotiated. There are about 4 million Filipinos in the U.S., many of them U.S. citizens who stand to receive a payment of between $600 to $1200 plus $500 for each child. There are also many U.S. citizens in the Philippines that may be eligible for payments as well. A normal Filipino income is about $200 to $300 a month so the direct payments would make a big difference to a lot of people facing the same issues with illness and a loss of work.