DOH: Cebu City COVID-19 critical care beds nearing capacity

The Department of Health (DOH) announced that COVID-19 critical care facilities in Cebu City are nearing their critical capacity due to a significant rise in cases.

Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire stated that 61 out of 80 barangays have reported new cases in the last 14 days, with 49 barangays experiencing clustering of cases.

As of June 24, ICU beds in Cebu City were 55% occupied, isolation beds were at 84% utilization, and ward beds were at 64.9% occupancy, with the critical level defined as 70% occupancy.

Central Visayas had a total of 6,525 COVID-19 cases as of June 25, with Cebu City accounting for 4,289 of these cases.

The DOH is investigating four potential factors contributing to the surge in cases: adherence to health standards, demographics of infected individuals, effectiveness of isolation, testing, and contact tracing, and specific local practices that may increase transmission.

Interagency Task Force officials, including Secretaries Cimatu, Ano, Galvez, and Duque, visited Cebu City to assess the situation.

The DOH expects to release its findings on the cause of the case increase by the following week.