A Taiwanese national with travel history in the Philippines tested positive for the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19), Taiwan’s Centers for Disease Control (CDC) confirmed on Thursday.

The said Covid-19 patient is the 44th case in Taiwan, an over-30-year-old male who resides in northern Taiwan.

“He traveled to the Philippines with his friends from February 28 to March 3. He had diarrhea in the Philippines on March 2. After he returned to Taiwan, Case #44 went to a clinic due to having a dry throat and tiredness on March 3. He went to a hospital and was reported as a suspected case on March 4,” the Taiwan CDC said.

Taiwan confirmed that the patient contracted the disease on March 5, citing a related investigation that suggests “it is an imported case linked to the Philippines.”

As of posting, the Philippine government has yet to confirm the said information.

There are more than 40 laboratory-confirmed cases of Covid-19 in Taiwan while there three in the Philippines — the 44-year-old Chinese national who died on February 1, the 38-year-old Chinese woman, and the 60-year-old Chinese woman who returned to China on January 31.

The latest data from the World Health Organization shows that there are 80,422 confirmed cases of Covid-2019 in China and 12,668 cases outside China. (PNA)