THE Covid-19 cases in the country surged to 459,789 after 1,754 additional cases were logged on Sunday.
Under the Department of Health’s (DOH) “Oplan Recovery,” 8,080 recoveries were reported with 36 deaths.
Oplan Recovery is the time-based and symptom-based recovery strategies, an initiative that DOH activated to monitor the status of confirmed Covid-19 deaths and recoveries.
Under Oplan Recovery, a patient is tagged as recovered when certain conditions are met even without repeat RT-PCR testing and is recommended by the Philippine College of Physicians, and the Philippine Society of Microbiology and Infectious Diseases.
It is characterized by enhanced data collection, validation, and reconciliation efforts between the DOH Central and Regional Offices, and the Local Government Units.
Of the total number of cases, 21,708 are active, 429,134 have recovered, and 8,947 have died.
Mideast hot zone
Meanwhile, latest government data showed the Middle East remains the region with the most number of Filipinos infected with Covid-19.
Based on the latest report of its Philippine Overseas Labor Office (POLO), the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) said it registered 6,721 overseas Filipino workers (OFW) who were afflicted with the disease in the Middle East.
It also noted 520 OFWs had died from Covid-19.
This was consistent with the report of the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) on the number of Covid-affected Filipinos abroad, which includes both permanent residents and temporary workers, in the region as of December 11, 2020.
DFA was able to register 7,547 Filipinos who were infected with Covid-19. Of these cases, 553 died from the disease. Labor and Employment Secretary Silvestre H. Bello III said their POLOs in Europe and the Americas reported 1,994 cases with 254 deaths.
“In Asia, the foreign offices recorded 1,106 Covid cases with one dead,” Bello said in a statement.
In his message for the recent International Migrants Day, Bello lauded the contribution of OFWs who continue to work abroad despite the pandemic.
He said these OFWs were constantly being monitored by the POLOs to ensure they get the necessary aid from the government.
“In these difficult times, we take our hats off to our OFWs around the world for their selfless sacrifices. From being frontliners to back support in the global fight against Covid-19, they all deserve our accolades,” Bello said.
He noted their efforts do not only benefit their families, but also the country’s economy especially during the pandemic.
“We continue to pray for the health and safety of our OFWs so that they can happily rejoin their families back home,” Bello said.