MANILA (UPDATE) — The Philippines' total COVID-19 cases climbed to 541,560 on Wednesday after the Department of Health (DOH) reported 1,345 new infections.

The additional tally does not include data from 4 laboratories that failed to submit their results on time.

This is the 10th straight day that new COVID-19 cases are below 2,000, according to the ABS-CBN Data Analytics Team.

The DOH reported 114 new COVID-related deaths, the highest since January 15, bringing the total to 11,401 fatalities. This is the 12th straight day that additional deaths counted more than 50.

The 2.11% case fatality rate is also the highest in more than six months, noted the ABS-CBN Data Analytics Team.

Meanwhile, 276 new recovered patients were recorded, raising the number of total recoveries to 499,971.

In a note on its daily COVID-19 bulletin, the DOH said 59 recoveries were reclassified as deaths after final validation. There were also 9 cases initially tagged as deaths that turned out to be recoveries.

Of the 30,188 active cases, 88.2% have mild symptoms, 6.1% are asymptomatic, 2.6% are in critical condition, 2.5% have severe symptoms, and 0.6% have moderate symptoms.

A total of 12 cases, 10 tagged as recovered, were removed from the official tally for being duplicate entries.

The DOH on Wednesday acknowledged the continued increase in COVID-19 cases in Cebu City but said hospitals are still able to manage patients.

Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire, however, noted the increasing hospital utilization rate in Lapu-Lapu City and Cebu province itself.

She also said those in Metro Manila and nearby regions that have not seen substantial spike in cases should not be complacent.

She attributed the increase in cases in Cebu City to the spread of the virus during the holidays and the delayed consultation of individuals with physicians.

• DOH says COVID-19 rise in Cebu still manageable

There are almost 44.8 million people currently infected with COVID-19 worldwide. Since the start of the pandemic, 106.9 million people have contracted the disease, according to the Johns Hopkins University coronavirus dashboard. Of those, more than 2.3 million have died and 59.8 million have recovered.

RELATED VIDEO:

Watch more in iWantv or TFC.tv