THE Department of Health (DOH) identified on Wednesday, June 24, four areas in Eastern Visayas as "emerging hotspots" for coronavirus disease (Covid-19).
DOH Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said they are monitoring Leyte, Samar, Southern Leyte and Ormoc City due to the surge in Covid-19 infections.
"Hindi pa po ganun karami ang mga kaso sa nasabing lugar ngunit nakikita na po natin na mas mabilis na tumataas kumpara po sa ibang mga lugar," Vergeire said in a nationwide televised conference.
Aside from the four areas in the region, DOH also included Cebu City and Cebu province of Central Visayas on the list.
As this developed, Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) Secretary Eduardo Año and National Task Force Against Covid-19 chief implementer Carlito Galvez Jr. arrived in Tacloban City on Wednesday to probe on the rising cases of Covid-19 in Leyte.
They also turned over 8,000 pieces of personal protective equipment to the regional officials.
In a report from the Philippine Information Agency (PIA)-8, the two officials said they "will push for the approval of the Regional Inter-agency Task Force resolution for the temporary suspension of the return of Locally Stranded Individuals and Returning Overseas Filipinos to their respective localities in Eastern Visayas effective July 1 to July 15, 2020."
"Sec. Año and Sec Galvez said that Eastern Visayas is doing a good job in containing Covid-19 with 435 confirmed cases where 80 are health workers and with zero death," read the PIA-8 report.
Earlier, lawmakers in the region expressed alarm over the national government's "Hatid Probinsya" program, following the sudden increase of coronavirus infections in Eastern Visayas.