Dengue cases in the country dropped by 76% to 59,675 as of mid-August from a year earlier, according to the Department of Health (DoH).
Deaths due to dengue also fell by 78% to 231 during the past seven months, Norielyn Evangelista, program manager of the National Aedes-borne Viral Diseases Prevention and Control Program, told an online news briefing on Friday.
Cases this year have been managed properly, unlike last year when the government declared a dengue outbreak after cases surged, she said.
Filipinos have stayed home for the most part since President Rodrigo R. Duterte locked down the main island of Luzon and other areas in mid-March to contain a coronavirus pandemic.
The death rate for dengue has fallen to 0.37% from 0.5% last year, Ms. Evangelista said.
Ms. Evangelista traced the drop to better surveillance, case management and diagnosis, outbreak response, research and health promotion. — Vann Marlo M. Villegas