Private Hospitals Association of the Philippines, Inc. (PHAPI) president Rene de Grano said the “most severe and critical cases” of Covid-19 in their facilities are either unvaccinated or partially vaccinated.
During the Laging Handa public briefing, de Grano said most of the Covid-19 cases that reach the critical or severe stage are the elderly with no vaccination.
He, however, noted the intensive care units of private hospitals in the country “can still cope with the number of Covid-19 patients.”
This was after Department of Health officer-in-charge Maria Rosario Vergeire confirmed the percentage of severe and critical Covid-19 cases in hospitals is increasing, but is still within the threshold.
The DOH said 811 or 9.7 percent of the Covid-19 admissions in hospitals are severe and critical cases.
In the past four weeks, DOH data showed severe and critical infections comprised more than nine percent of hospital admissions.
“Many of the admissions are mild cases that are incidental Covid. They are discharged in a few days,” de Grano said.
As of Aug. 22, 72,310,149 or 92.59 percent of the country’s target population (78,100,578) have been vaccinated against Covid-19, including 78.01 percent of 8,721,357 senior citizens.
Meanwhile, 17,419,141 individuals have received booster shots out of the fully vaccinated population.
“We noticed those admitted who are immuno-compromised and with pre-existing diseases who are not fully vaccinated, those are the ones who progress to severe and critical,” de Grano added.
The DOH, through the PinasLakas Campaign, continues to bring Covid-19 vaccines and booster doses closer to the people as health experts’ projections show that cases and hospitalizations would rise next month if booster rate remains low.– PIA
