MANILA (UPDATED) - The Philippines recorded 5,392 new COVID-19 cases on Monday, raising the country's total to 1,441,746, the Department of Health (DOH) said.

The agency also reported 6,477 recent recoveries and 43 additional fatalities due to the respiratory disease.

Of the cumulative total cases, 51,594 are active.

Total deaths stood at 25,192 deaths, and total recoveries, at 1,364,960.

ABS-CBN Data Analytics head Edson Guido said today's number of have been "the lowest reported in a day since May 25."

"This also marks the 3rd straight day of less than 100 deaths," he said.

All laboratories "were operational on July 3, 2021, while 10 labs were not able to submit their data to the COVID-19 Document Repository System," the DOH said.

"Based on the data in the last 14 days, the 10 non-reporting labs contribute, on average, 0.70 percent of samples tested," it added.

Of the last group of 47,614 who were tested for COVID-19, 11.3 percent were found positive for the virus.

The country has administered over 11.7 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines, as of Sunday.

Of the figure, 8,839,124 were given as first dose, while 2,868,905 were second doses, the government said.

• Philippines administers 11.7 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines

The National Capital Region, which was the epicenter of COVID-19 in the Philippines, could attain population protection by November, Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said in an online press conference.

"Based from the speed of the scale of how we are doing our vaccination in the NCR, may posibilidad na ma-achieve natin yung population protection (there is a possibility that we can achieve population protection)," she said.

"Aside from having this certain percentage of vaccinated individuals, kailangan masiguro natin na yung mga seniors and mga may comorbidities ay na-achieve din natin yung target numbers," she added.

(Aside from having this certain percentage of vaccinated individuals, we need to ensure that we would also achieve the target number of vaccinated senior citizens and persons with comorbidities.)

As of July 4, only 788,630 senior citizens have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19, while 897,719 persons with comorbidities have received their second dose of the vaccine.

The Philippines is also trying to speed up its vaccination program in evacuation areas near the rumbling Taal volcano and other disaster prone areas to ensure that the disease would not spread among evacuees as the typhoon season begins.

• DOH to deploy more COVID-19 vaccines to evacuation areas near Taal

The DOH has "procured enough vaccines for all evacuees" and will be "providing additional vaccines as well as additional test kits," said Dr. Voltaire Guadalupe, head of Calabarzon region's Health Emergency Medical Service.

"Lahat ng pwedeng mabakunahan will be vaccinated," he said in an online press conference.

(All those who are eligible to be vaccinated will be vaccinated.)

The DOH earlier said the COVID-19 situation in the Philippines is already considered as "low risk" as growth rate of the virus nationwide has been at -9 percent, while the average daily attack rate from June 13 to 26 was only at 5.42.

Independent research group OCTA disputed the claim, saying based on the metrics of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Covid Act Now, the COVID-19 situation in the Philippines ranges between moderate and high.

While intensive care unit utilization rate nationwide remains low at 55 percent, positive test rate remains high at 11 percent, OCTA said in its July 5 bulletin.

• Philippines now categorized as 'low risk' for COVID-19: DOH

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