City’s Covid-19 positivity rate drops in past two weeks – CHSO

The Summer Capital’s Coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) positivity rate dropped for the past two weeks from 5.19 to 4.66 percent as it continues to be at ‘low risk’, level 1 status, a local health official disclosed.

In the regular management committee meeting of city officials, Oct. 4, led by Mayor Benjamin Magalong, City Health Services Office (CHSO) head Dr. Rowena Galpo said the city’s average daily attack rate dipped during the period from 6.5 to 2.6 per 100,000.

The city also had a Covid-19 two-week growth rate of (-)57 to (-)14.67 percent; weekly infection rate of 1.10 to 0.80; and average tests done of 296 to 240 during the period.

As of Oct. 3, the city’s hospital critical utilization rate is from 10.55 to 8.44 percent while its isolation facility bed occupancy slightly increased from 6.54 to 6.81 percent, she said.

Meanwhile, Galpo revealed that Omicron remains the dominant Covid-19 variant affecting 67 percent of cases in the city as of September 29 this year with Delta affecting 18 percent; Alpha, 10 percent; and the Beta variant infecting five percent of the population.

As to Omicron’s subvariants, she said BA.5 is most dominant at 66 percent; B.1.1.529, 32 percent; with both BA.2.12.1 and BA 4 subvariants at one percent each. – Gaby B. Keith