MANILA - The Department of Health (DOH) on Tuesday said it is closely monitoring an uptick in COVID-19 cases in Visayas and Mindanao.

Zamboanga Peninsula's COVID-19 cases shot up to about 1,500 cases in the first few days of May, nearly quadruple the number of patients in the region in the first week of April, DOH data showed.

"Kailangan maigting ang pagbabantay sa Visayas and Mindanao areas kasi dito tayo nakakakita ng pagtaas ng kaso," Health Director Alethea De Guzman said in an online press conference.

(We need to strictly monitor the Visayas and Mindanao areas because this is where we see an increase in cases.)

Zamboanga peninsula's average daily attack rate (ADAR) is at 6.10, which is on the verge of reaching a higher risk category once it gets past 7, she said.

The World Health Organization defines ADAR as the number of people who get infected at a specific time out of an at-risk population.

Northern Mindanao, Soccsksargen, Davao, Eastern Visayas and the Bangsamoro Region are also reporting more COVID-19 cases, she said.

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"Ang kadalasang naoobserbahan ng local government units at regions ay 'yung pangangailangan paigtingin ang minimum public health standards," De Guzman said.

(Usual observations from local government units and regions is that they need to strictly implement the observance of minimum public health standards.)

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The DOH has yet to recommend to the national government heightened quarantine restrictions in these regions as health facilities are still capable of catering to COVID-19 patients there, she said.

"Ang isang direction natin ay not be dependent on heightened community restriction," she said.

(One direction we have is to not be dependent on heightened community restrictions.)

But De Guzman noted that local chief executives are still authorized to declared granular lockdowns in some villages where COVID-19 cases continue to rise.

The DOH has collected samples from several COVID-19 patients in Mindanao to check if the rise in cases is related to the presence of several foreign variants that make the virus more transmissible, she said.

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President Rodrigo Duterte earlier warned Filipinos that he would reimpose another lockdown if COVID-19 cases surge again. Cases had surged in March and April, spurring strict lockdowns in hotspot Metro Manila and nearby provinces.

As of May 17, the Philippines has 54,235 active COVID-19 cases, most of which are in Metro Manila and Calabarzon.

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