OCTA: Omicron subvariants cause slight COVID-19 case rise in NCR

The OCTA Research group attributes the slight increase in COVID-19 cases in the National Capital Region (NCR) to the emergence of more transmissible Omicron subvariants.

COVID infections in Metro Manila have increased by 8 percent over the past week, with the reproduction number rising to 1.05 as of May 20.

Despite the increase in reproduction number, OCTA fellow Dr. Guido David noted that Metro Manila's COVID-19 risk classification remains low.

He projected that even in a worst-case scenario of the new Omicron subvariants spreading, Metro Manila may only see a "weak" surge in cases.

David pointed out that the average daily attack rate remains very low at 0.52 as of May 23, with a daily positivity rate of 1.2 percent and hospital care utilization at 21 percent.

The country is currently monitoring the Omicron subvariants BA.2.12.1 and BA.4, with BA.4 classified as a "variant of concern" by the DOH due to its higher contagiousness.