MANILA (UPDATE) —The southern city of Cagayan de Oro is in need of 24 ventilators as the rising number of COVID-19 cases pushed health-care capacity to moderate risk, a lawmaker said Tuesday.

The city's health care utilization rate is at 74.56 percent, said Cagayan de Oro 2nd District Rep. Rufus Rodriguez who appealed to the health department and Cabinet officials to send ventilators and additional vaccine supply.

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“The hospitals in the city are still seeing an influx of COVID-19 patients, with some forced to wait in line for vacancy,” he said.

The ventilators “can be sourced from the remaining 63 units the DOH (Department of Health) has announced were on standby and ready to be deployed to the regions," the lawmaker said.

“The DOH has to help our hospitals treat COVID-19 patients especially now that there is a so-called Delta or Indian variant that is more contagious than the UK variant,” he said.

The following hospitals are in need of more ventilators, he said:

• Northern Mindanao Medical Center - 10 units
• J. R. Borja General Hospital - 3 units
• Maria Reyna - Xavier University Hospital - 3 units
• Capitol University Medical Center - 2 units
• Cagayan de Oro Polymedic Medical Plaza -2 units
• Cagayan de Oro Medical Center/Oncology - 2 units
• Madonna and Child Hospital - 2 units

The city has recorded 10,107 cases of COVID-19 as of Sunday, of which 805 were active infections and 145 were deaths, according to heath department data.

In an interview with Teleradyo Wednesday, Rodriguez said the ICU utilization rate in the city has reached full capacity.

"You have to be waitlisted in both public and private hospitals. Puno na ang ICU beds (are full)... There are so many patients.... With many new COVID-19 cases, kailangan talaga ng (we really need) respirators," he said.

The country's pandemic task force has already acknowledged his request, Rodriguez added.

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