The Department of Health (DOH) on Sunday said that there is a possibility that the country might experience dengue and leptospirosis outbreaks again due to climate change.
According to DOH Undersecretary Eric Tayag, the dengue outbreak that happened in the previous El Niño might occur again.
"During the previous El Niño, which is an effect of climate change, there were dengue epidemics, and it is not impossible that it will happen again," Tayag said.
He also noted that an outbreak of leptospirosis is also possible due to frequent torrential rains and flooding.
The recent data from DOH showed that there is a total of 80,318 dengue cases from January 1 to July 15 this year.
The figure reflects 17 percent lower compared to the 96,500 cases recorded in the same period last year.
DOH said the nationwide record for leptospirosis cases totals 2,079 which is 59 percent higher than the 1,310 infections recorded during the same period last year.
Meanwhile, the Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth) has said that hospitalization for dengue and leptospirosis is covered by its health benefit packages.
The state health insurer stated its readiness to pay P10,000 for hospitalized mild dengue cases and P16,000 for severe dengue cases.
