Amid the increasing number of infections in recent weeks, the Department of Health (DOH) advised hospitals to prepare wards for COVID-19 patients.
However, DOH officer-in-charge Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire assured people not to panic as the majority of the recorded COVID-19 cases were either asymptomatic or had mild symptoms
According to Vergeire, their office has already told hospitals to be ready when there are additional admissions.
She also said that only 9% of the COVID-19 patients are considered critical during the House Committee on Appropriations's hearing, adding that the utilization of healthcare facilities nationwide remains at 20%.
Moreover, Vergeire attributed the increase in COVID-19 instances to the introduction of new virus types, greater movement of people, and vulnerable individuals' exposure to the virus.
On Thursday, a member of the independent OCTA Research warned that the National Capital Region's optimism rate might reach the same level as when the country was dealing with the Delta wave, or as high as 25%, by next week.
Meanwhile, OCTA Research data shows that the positivity rate, or the number of people who tested positive for COVID-19, in Metro Manila reached 19.7% as of May 2.
