The provinces of Bulacan, Cavite, and Rizal will be placed under Alert Level 3 starting January 5, according to acting presidential spokesperson and Cabinet Secretary Karlo Nograles.

Nograles said this is due to the sudden spike in COVID-19 cases in the said provinces.

"Due to a sharp increase of COVID-19 cases in the particular localities, the Inter-Agency Task Force approved yesterday, January 3, 2022, the recommendation of its sub-Technical Working Group on Data Analytics to escalate Bulacan, Cavite, and Rizal to Alert Level 3," he explained.

"This shall take effect from January 5, 2022, until January 15, 2022," he added.

Under Alert Level 3, indoor venues are only allowed to accommodate 30% of vaccinated individuals, while only 50% of fully immunized citizens are permitted for outdoors venues.

In-person classes, contact sports, funfairs/peryas, and casinos are also not allowed under Alert Level 3.

The announcement follows the recent implementation of Alert Level 3 in Metro Manila, where unvaccinated residents are put under stricter restrictions.