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Huge COVID outbreak unlikely despite case uptick: DOH chief

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Rowegie Abanto, ABS-CBN News

MANILA — The Philippines is unlikely to experience a repeat of the COVID outbreak seen at the peak of the pandemic despite a recent increase in cases, Health Secretary Ted Herbosa said on Tuesday.&quot;I don’t think there will be large or huge outbreak that will stress the health system,&quot; he told ANC&#x27;s &quot;Headstart.&quot;Health authorities recorded <a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/video/news/12/18/23/ph-records-2725-new-covid-cases-from-dec-12-to-18">2,725 new coronavirus cases</a> from December 12 to 18 — a nearly 50 percent increase from the previous week&#x27;s 1,821 infections. As of Monday, there were 4,780 active COVID infections, according to the Department of Health&#x27;s data.Herbosa pointed out that some 74 million Filipinos have received protection from COVID vaccines and another 5 million have gotten their coronavirus defense naturally from getting infected.&quot;I think the fear and the scare isn&#x27;t as much as it was when there was a lot of uncertainty. So people have learned more about these illnesses,&quot; he also said.&quot;The doctors are also more confident about how they treat these cases. It’s not like when it was 2020 when we were all scared, the doctors were dying, patients were dying, and emergency departments were full.&quot;<figure class="op-interactive"><iframe height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/atMtpgFkyyU?enablejsapi=1" width="560"></iframe></figure><div class="iwantbar">Watch more News on <a href="https://www.iwanttfc.com/#!/browse/Genres/News/tag_id_genres/id_news" target="_blank">iWantTFC</a></div><div>MONOVALENT XBB OMICRON</div>In the interview, Herbosa said the Philippines was requesting monovalent XBB omicron vaccines from COVAX, the vaccine-sharing facility.Last week, Herbosa said the country would accept COVAX&#x27;s offer of 1 million doses of the monovalent XBB shots, which are said to increase one&#x27;s immune response against the currently circulating XBB-sublineage variants.The monovalent XBB vaccines will arrive in tranches of 500,000, he said.<ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/10/24/23/no-plans-for-doh-to-get-more-bivalent-vaccines-herbosa">No plans for DOH to get more bivalent vaccines: Herbosa</a></li></ul>The reformulated vaccines will be prioritized for vulnerable populations such as the elderly and the immunocompromised, Herbosa said, citing the World Health Organization&#x27;s recommendation.He said the monovalent XBB jabs would be administered 6 months after receiving the last booster shot.&quot;If you&#x27;ve had your shot before you&#x27;re boosted and you&#x27;re healthy there is no recommendation to get a booster,&quot; he said. &quot;You&#x27;ll be okay with what you received before.&quot;The Philippines did not allot a budget for COVID vaccine procurement in the proposed 2024 budget.When asked if the country needed more funding for COVID vaccines, Herbosa said, &quot;We don&#x27;t have to buy as much as before.&quot;He pointed out that the nearly 400,000 donated bivalent vaccines &quot;took us months to consume.&quot;&quot;It seems that not so many are interested anymore [in getting] the vaccination,&quot; he said.<ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/11/15/23/497-million-covid-19-jabs-wasted-doh">49.7 million COVID-19 jabs wasted: DOH</a></li></ul>

It is unlikely that the Philippines will experience a big COVID outbreak despite the increase in cases, Health Secretary Ted Herbosa said Tuesday.

Huge COVID outbreak unlikely despite case uptick: DOH chief

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Huge COVID outbreak unlikely despite case uptick: DOH chief

Rowegie Abanto,

ABS-CBN News

Published December 19, 2023 11:07 AM PHT

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COVID

coronavirus

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