DOH: Daily COVID cases may hit 18K by yearend sans masks

DOH officer-in-charge Maria Rosario Vergeire warned that daily COVID-19 cases in the Philippines could reach 18,000 by November or December if people stop wearing face masks.

Vergeire presented this projection during an IATF meeting and noted that cases may range from 2,500 to 18,000 without mask mandates.

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. is set to issue an executive order making indoor masking voluntary, despite health experts' concerns about the recent detection of Omicron XBB and XBC variants.