Philippines logs 6,846 new COVID-19 cases, total surges to 1,108,826

The Philippines' Department of Health (DOH) reported Monday 6,846 new coronavirus disease (COVID-19) infections, bringing the total number of confirmed cases in the Southeast Asian country to 1,108,826.

The death toll climbed to 18,562 after 90 more patients died from the viral disease, the DOH said.

The Philippines, which has about 110 million population, has tested over 11 million people since the outbreak in January 2020.

Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire bared the DOH's plan to apply for emergency use authorization of the COVID-19 vaccine made by Chinese drugmaker Sinopharm.

"This is something that we do so that we can facilitate the process of receiving vaccines," Vergeire added.

On Friday, the World Health Organization (WHO) announced that it approved for emergency use the vaccines developed by Sinopharm. The WHO approval expands the list of COVID-19 vaccines that the COVAX initiative, the global scheme backed by the WHO, can buy. (ANI/Xinhua)

( With inputs from ANI )