Two towns in Cagayan province will be subjected to enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) to address the rising COVID-19 cases.
The Regional Inter-Agency Task Force approved the recommendation of the mayors of Baggao and Solana for the 14-day ECQ. Its implementation will begin on Tuesday, August 24, through September 6.
According to the Provincial Health Office, on August 22, there were 205 active COVID-19 cases in Solana.
Up to 288 active cases were recorded in Baggao, which is now the second most active case in the entire Region II.
Tuguegarao City leads with 1,316 active cases, according to the City Health Office on Sunday, August 23.
As a result, the ECQ was extended for another 7 days in the city to address the spread of COVID-19 infection, which is now being recorded in various government offices.
Meanwhile, the Department of Health Region 2 recommended conducting aggressive community testing in areas they identified as special concern areas.
Areas of special concern in Cagayan include Tuguegarao City, Baggao, Solana, Ballesteros, Iguig, Alcala, Gonzaga, Allacapan, Lasam, Buguey, Aparri, Lal-lo, Pamplona, Amulung and Aparri.
In Isabela, it is Santiago City, Ilagan City, Cauayan City, Tumauini, Luna, Cabagan and Roxas.
2 towns in Cagayan will be subjected to ECQ
While in Nueva Vizcaya, areas of special concern include Bayombong, Bambang, and Solano, where a case of Delta variant was discovered.
DOH Region 2 is only finalizing the guidelines of community testing to ensure proper compliance and implementation by local governments.
Meanwhile, the number of new COVID-19 cases recorded in the country per day is likely to hit 20,000, according to a group of experts.
“‘Yong 20,000, mukhang very possible na maabot natin iyan within the next two weeks. 20,000 cases in one day. Itong 17,000 na nakita natin 2 days ago, hindi pa iyan ‘yong pinakamataas, hindi pa iyan ‘yong peak,” said Guido David of the OCTA Research Group, a group of professors conducting the study on COVID-19 data.
But according to OCTA, the growth rate or increase in cases in Metro Manila has slowed in the past week amid the ECQ.
In NCR, the reproduction rate or number of people likely to be infected by 1 infected individual dropped to 1.67, compared to the past 7 days of 1.9.
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