Philippines' Delta variant death toll increasing as country logs 5,651 new Covid-19 cases, total above 1.51 million

A health administers a dose of the AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine at a vaccination center at the Ospital ng Maynila Medical Center in Manila, the Philippines, on Monday, July 19, 2021. Philippine central bank Governor Benjamin Diokno said the government should accelerate its vaccination program and pursue structural reforms to boost economic growth and attract foreign direct investment. - Bloomberg

MANILA, July 19 (Xinhua): The Philippines' Department of Health (DOH) reported on Monday 5,651 new coronavirus disease (Covid-19) infections, bringing the total number of confirmed cases in the Sout-East Asian country to 1,513,396.

The death toll climbed to 26,786 after 72 more patients died from the viral disease, the DOH said.

The Philippines, with a population of around 110 million, has tested nearly 15 million people since the outbreak in January 2020.

Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said the death toll from the highly transmissible Delta variant has climbed to three after the DOH confirmed the death of a 78-year-old woman from Antique province in the central Philippines.

The Philippines has detected 35 Delta variant cases so far, including 11 locally acquired cases.

"All Delta variant cases are immediately re-assessed to determine their current clinical, laboratory and isolation status," she said in a statement. - Xinhua