MANILA — The Philippines on Thursday recorded 562 additional coronavirus disease (COVID-19) cases, 481 of which were classified fresh cases and 81 tagged as late cases.

The total 481 is the second highest number of fresh cases reported in a single day since the Department of Health started using the fresh and late cases categories.

Fresh cases refer to those whose test results were released within the last 3 days, while late cases are those whose results were released four days ago or more.

Of the fresh cases, 120 are from the National Capital Region while 273 are from Region 7 or Central Visayas while 88 are tagged as “Others," which could refer to cases from other regions or missing information on location.

Of the late cases, 33 were from NCR, 26 from Region 7 and 22 tagged as “Others.”

REGION 7

The 299 additional cases from Region 7 (a combination of the fresh and late cases) is the second highest tally announced in a single day for the region.

Since last month, cases from Region 7 has seen an increase. While NCR or Metro Manila remains the epicenter of the outbreak in the Philippines, Cebu has been identified as a hotspot.

• READ: Expert says NCR still epicenter of COVID-19, Cebu City is hotspot

The initial spike of cases in Cebu in Region 7 was due to a cluster of cases in a couple of barangays and jails.

“Itong mga nakaraang araw meron tayong observed na increase ng kaso sa Region 7,” Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said during a televised briefing.

(These past days, we have observed an increase in cases in Region 7.)

She said this is why the government decided to put Cebu City under enhanced community quarantine (ECQ).

• READ: Duterte places Cebu City under enhanced community quarantine anew

“Ang Kagawaran ng Kalusugan ay kasalukuyan pong nakikipagtulungan sa National Task Force against COVID-19 sa ating mga eksperto at mga lokal na pamahalaan sa rehiyon upang mapag-aralan ng husto kung ano ang nangyayaring sitwasyon sa lugar,” Vergeire added.

(The Department of Health is currently working with the National Task Force against COVID-19, our experts and our local government in the region to thoroughly study what is happening in the area.)

She said Secretary Francisco Duque III has also instructed the Epidemiology Bureau to closely monitor the situation.

RECOVERIES, DEATHS

Meanwhile, the DOH also reported 270 new COVID-19 recoveries or a total of 7,090 recovered patients.

This is the 8th day that the number of recoveries exceeded 240.

There were also 9 new deaths or a total of 1,116 COVID-related fatalities. Only 2 of the 9 new deaths died in June. The others are from previous months.

The DOH also said it removed one case, which was also tagged as dead, from the total number of confirmed cases. This is part of the agency’s continued validation efforts.

Over 8.3 million people worldwide have been infected with COVID-19, according to the Johns Hopkins University coronavirus dashboard. More than 4 million already recovered while 449,000 have died.