Eastern Visayas’ recovery rate from the coronavirus disease has risen to 95.44 percent after 62 more survivors upped the total to 16,886, according to Department of Health-Region 8 (DOH-8) data on Monday.

The total recoveries are from the 17,693 confirmed cases since March 2020.

To date, the region still has 537 active cases while 270 patients have died of complications, mostly senior citizens and persons with comorbidities, the DOH said

The region is now under the low-risk category with an infection rate of one per 100,000 population.

In the latest case bulletin, there were 13 new infections – eight in Leyte, two in Tacloban City, two in Northern Samar, and one in Calbayog City.

The DOH attributed the region’s high recovery rate to the high percentage of asymptomatic or mild patients, which is 96 percent of the total.

The rest are severe or critical cases.

“Even with the significant decline of cases in the past weeks, we, in the DOH continue to ask the public to follow basic health protocols to avoid a possible surge of cases in the future,” DOH regional information officer Jelyn Malibago said in a statement.

DOH continues to reiterate its information drive, BIDA Solusyon, which promotes four key behaviors to reduce the possible transmission of the virus.

BIDA stands for Bawal walang mask (Not wearing a face mask is not allowed); I-sanitize ang mga kamay at iwas hawak sa mga bagay (Sanitize your hands and avoid touching surfaces); Dumistansiya ng isang metro (Keep a one-meter distance from other people); and Alamin ang totoong impormasyon (Know factual information).

The DOH also urged the public to support the country’s vaccination program against Covid-19, which has been rolled out for health workers and senior citizens in the region. (PNA)