MANILA, Philippines — The number of Filipinos abroad who were infected with the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) rose to 12,622 on Friday as 45 new cases were recorded, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said.
The new COVID-19 cases among overseas Filipinos were recorded in Asia and the Pacific and the Middle East and Africa regions.
“The reported increase is due to late reports received from one territory in the Asia Pacific region,” the DFA said.
18 December 2020
The DFA reports another spike in the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases among Filipinos abroad, with 45 new cases in Asia and the Pacific and the Middle East and Africa. Meanwhile, 13 new recoveries and no new fatality were recorded. (1/3)@teddyboylocsin pic.twitter.com/3gNPSOPnsI
— DFA Philippines (@DFAPHL) December 18, 2020
The agency also reported 13 new recoveries and no new fatality among those infected.
As many as 8,126 Filipinos abroad have recovered from the respiratory disease, while 862 have died.
Those currently undergoing treatment are 3,634, majority or 2,405 are from the Middle East and Africa, 798 are from Asia and the Pacific, 370 from Europe, and 61 from the Americas.
SARS-CoV-2, the new coronavirus that causes COVID-19, has so far infected nearly 75 million people worldwide since it was first detected in Hubei, China late last year.
In the Philippines, there are currently 456,562 confirmed COVID-19 cases, including 420,666 recoveries and 8,875 deaths. [ac]