Philippines

Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19)

Situation Report #112
10 October 2022
Data reported by the Department of Health on 9 October 2022

3,967,861 3,878,240 63,264 73,305,697 (65.7%) 1

Cases Recoveries Deaths Vaccinated with last dose of primary series

Please see the Philippines Department of Health (DOH) Daily Case Bulletins and COVID-19 Tracker for further information.

Summary of the epidemiological situation in Philippines2

Key numbers

15.6%
14,333 cases 6 deaths* 116,419 tests
(3 - 9 October 2022) (3 - 9 October 2022) (3 - 9 October 2022) Test Positivity Rate
(3 - 9 October 2022)

24.3% 2,524 27.2% 21,039

ICU bed occupancy for ICU beds for Non-ICU bed occupancy for Non-ICU beds for
COVID-19 patients COVID-19 patients COVID-19 patients COVID-19 patients

*Obtained from FASSSTER COVID-19 death tally as of 10 October 2022

COVID-19 cases
The trend of the reported COVID-19 cases in the Philippines is fluctuating. Five weeks (22 August - 18 September 2022)
of decreasing trend has been followed by an increase (19 - 25 September 2022), then another two weeks of decrease
3
(26 September - 9 October 2022). There were 14,333 new cases (12.8 cases per 100,000 population ) reported in week
40 (3 - 9 October 2022) that is 10.4% lower than week 39 [26 September - 2 October 2022: 15,998 new cases (14.3 cases
3
per 100,000 population )]. In week 40, the following regions recorded the highest case counts: National Capital Region
(6,096 cases), Region IV-A: CALABARZON (2,947 cases), and Region III: Central Luzon (1,480 cases).

Figure 1. Daily reported COVID-19 cases in the Philippines (30 January 2020 - 9 October 2022)

1
Percent of total population (n = 111,572,254)
2
Weekly case counts were obtained from FASSSTER COVID-19 PROJECT
3 Total population (n=111,572,254)
1
 Healthcare utilization Laboratory: testing rates, positivity
rates and genomic surveillance

The daily number (7-day average) of COVID-19

The number of RT-PCR tests conducted in the
occupied ICU beds had been in a decreasing trend
recent week is 5.6% lower than the previous week.
for the past two weeks (week 40 - 610 beds, week 39
There were 1.04 tests per 1,000 population
- 636 beds, week 38 - 650 beds). As of 9 October
(116,419 tests) for week 40 while for week 39 there
2022, the COVID-19 ICU bed utilization is 24.3%.
were 1.10 tests per 1,000 population (123,275
tests). The test positivity rate (number of
The utilization of COVID-19 dedicated mechanical
individuals that tested positive/number of
ventilators (7-day average) in the recent week (week
individuals tested) in week 40 increased by 25.0%
40 - 290 ventilators) decreased by 8.5% from week
from the 12.5% recorded in week 36.
39 (317 ventilators).

On 27 September 2022, Department of Health

Officer-in-Charge Dr Maria Rosario Vergeire
reported that from the latest whole genome
sequencing run, 1,400 were confirmed to be
Omicron Variant of Concern (VOC) and nine were
Delta variant. There were 1,200 BA.5 cases, 33
BA.4, three BA.2.75, two BA.2.12.1, and 162 tagged
4,5
as “Other sublineages.” Of the 1,200 BA.5 cases,
one is a Returning Overseas Filipino (ROF) and the
1,199 of the BA.5 cases were detected across the 17
regions. The 33 BA.4 cases were detected from
Regions X and XII while the three BA.2.75 cases
were from Region VII and CAR. For the two
BA.2.12.1 cases, one is from Region II while the
other case is from CAR. The nine Delta cases were
detected from three regions (Table 1).

Figure 2. Total bed and ICU bed distribution over time stratified by occupancy (as of 9 October 2022)

4
DOH: 1,400 new cases of omicron subvariants, 9 delta infections detected | ABS-CBN News
5
PH detects 1,238 add'l Omicron, 9 new Delta cases | Philippine News Agency (pna.gov.ph)

Table 1. Number of BA.5, BA.4, BA.2.75, BA.2.12.1 and Delta variant cases detected
per region in the Philippines, 27 September 2022

COVID-19 deaths

Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, 63,264 COVID-19 related deaths have been reported in Philippines
as of 9 October 2022 (Figure 3). Between 1 September and 9 October 2022, there were 176 deaths reported; 161 in
September and 15 in 1 - 9 October 2022.

Figure 3. Daily number of COVID-19 deaths in the Philippines by date of death since 2020 (as of 9 October 2022) 2

 Vaccination

As of 9 October 2022, 65.7% of the total population were vaccinated with the last dose of primary series. From 3
- 9 October 2022, 762,788 jabs were administered. Among healthcare workers (A1 priority group), the coverage
is 96.6%, with 61.1% having received the first booster dose and 24.1% received the second booster dose.

The Philippine government continues to prioritize COVID-19 vaccination (primary series and booster shots) of
the vulnerable sectors of the population - elderly population (A2 priority group), persons with comorbidities
(A3) and poor population (A5); their respective vaccination coverage (vaccinated with last dose of primary
series) is 78.9%, 94.5%, and 73.2% (Figure 4). For the first booster shot, 25.8% of the eligible population
received the jab. The vaccination coverage of first booster dose for A2, A3, and A5 priority groups are 30.8%,
31.2%, and 15.1%, respectively.

*eligible population for booster

Figure 4. Overview of COVID-19 vaccination status of Philippines’ population as of 9 October 2022

The vaccination coverage (last dose of primary series) of A2

population is 90% and above in three regions – with 93.6% in
NCR, while the coverage is lowest (54.9%) in BARMM (Table
8
2). The vaccination coverage of the A5 group is 70% and
above in six of the 17 regions (Table 3).

In a media forum on 11 October 2022, Dr Vergeire

mentioned that hesitancy of parents remain to be one of the
challenges experienced in terms of giving COVID-19 vaccine
to children. For the 5 - 11 year old group, just 35.8% were
6
vaccinated .

6
(115) Department of Health holds media forum | ABS-CBN News - YouTube 3
 7

Table 2. Overview of vaccination of A2 population per region in the Philippines (9 October 2022)  Table 3. Overview of vaccination of A5 population per region in the Philippines (9 October 2022) 

Strategic approach to COVID-19

Prevention, Detection, and Control Community Engagement

Risk Communication and Community Center for Health Development – Region

Engagement (RCCE) VIII (CHD8)’s Health Education and
Promotion Unit trained over 60 selected
Risk Communications Local Government Unit (LGU) Health
WHO Philippines republished localized Education and Promotion Officer (HEPO)
content on taking care of one’s mental designates from the provinces of
health during the COVID-19 pandemic. Northern Samar and Samar on 3-7
October 2022. The training highlighted
the integration of demand generation
microplans for both Routine
Immunization and COVID-19 vaccines.

Community Engagement (CE) Consultant

Ava Sharon Batay-an served as speaker
and co-facilitator during the said event.
She attended the event primarily to
provide supportive supervision to the
CHD8 trainers. This Risk Communication
& Community Engagement Microplanning
(RCCEM) activity  is a rollout of the
training of trainers conducted for CHD
levels in September 2022.   CHD8’s
Assistant Regional Director Rodolfo
Albornoz welcomed the participants and
emphasized that the RCCEM is a joint
initiative of DOH, WHO and UNICEF to
support the Routine Immunisation and
COVID-19 vaccine uptake in
communities.  
  

4
Partner Coordination

Updates from USAID

USAID’s Meeting Targets and Maintaining Epidemic Control (EpiC) Project, partners
organize a Community of Practice on mental health and psychosocial support for
healthcare workers
In observance of the National Mental Health Month this October, more than 500
participants joined the community of practice webinar on mental health, centering on
psychosocial support for healthcare workers. USAID, through its EpiC Project, co-organized
this collaborative learning session with the Department of Health (DOH) and the National
Center for Mental Health (NCMH) as part of its mental health webinar series. In this session,
mental health experts and practitioners shared evidence-based interventions that could
help support the health workforce’s psychosocial and mental health needs.

5
 The panelists from DOH’s Disease
Prevention and Control Bureau, Health
Emergency Management Bureau, and
Health Promotion Bureau, as well as
NCMH’s Crisis Hotline and Center for
Wellness and Southern Philippines
Medical Center (SPMC)-Institute of
Psychiatry and Behavioral Medicine, also
shared their efforts and activities that help
build resilience among the healthcare
workers. They highlighted their good USAID’s EpiC, managed by FHI 360, conducts a series of facility-
practices for mental health and based mental health sessions within its 46 priority hospitals to
better understand their mental health situation and needs and
psychosocial support (MHPSS) in the
provide a safe space for healthcare workers to discuss their
context of COVID-19 and provided access mental health concerns.
to resources and tools for psychosocial
support services.

USAID and partners engage religious

Through EpiC, USAID partner FHI 360
leaders in promoting COVID-19
continues to support in building mentally
vaccination and booster
healthy and resilient healthcare workers,
which could lead to better patient care,
USAID, UNICEF, and the Bangsamoro
thus, saving more lives.
Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao
(BARMM) Ministry of Health trained 40
religious leaders from the different local
government units in Lanao Del Sur in
developing COVID-19 vaccine key
messages anchored on Islamic beliefs.
USAID and other development partners
guided the religious leaders on the
essentials of vaccine communication.
USAID also helped the religious leaders in
developing demand generation action
plans, as aligned with the Philippine
government’s national COVID-19
vaccination campaign dubbed PinasLakas,
aimed to increase
Hand-over of PCR andprimary vaccination
Extraction Machine at and
City of Dasmarinas Molecular Laboratory
booster coverage among the vulnerable
groups.

Panelists and representatives from USAID, EpiC, DOH, NCMH,

and SPMC joined together to highlight the importance of
MHPSS in COVID-19 response and in health programming.

6
Updates from UNICEF UNICEF and BARMM MSSD visit two CDCs
in Upi Maguindanao to ensure adherence
Supporting COVID-19 vaccination to public health standards for the 81
UNICEF turned over a walk-in cold room learners that they serve.
for vaccines to the Integrated Public
Health Office of Tawi-Tawi. Procured with
funding support from the Government of
Japan, this new storage facility will help
improve the vaccine cold chain and
delivery of life-saving routine
immunization services for children in the
province.

UNICEF supports the establishment of a walk-in cold

room for vaccines in Tawi-Tawi with funding from
the Government of Japan. ©UNICEF/2022

Learning Recovery Programme in Region

VIII
UNICEF joined the Bangsamoro
Autonomous Region in Muslim
Mindanao Ministry of Social Services and
Development (BARMM MSSD) in
monitoring Child Development Centers
(CDCs) in Barangays Borongotan and
Kinitaan in Upi, Maguindanao, to ensure
observance of health and safety
protocols. The reopening of CDCs is a big
step in recovering lost learning for
millions of children. Early childhood
education builds the foundational and
socio-emotional skills of young children,
helping them prepare for elementary
school.