The number of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) cases in the Philippines soared to 202 on Wednesday after the Department of Health (DOH) confirmed 15 new cases, said a report on GMANews.

The number of deaths due to the disease rose to 17 after three new deaths were reported, said the report posted on the online news site afternoon yesterday, March 18.

Earlier just past noon, Rappler.com reported:

A total of 193 patients have tested positive for COVID-19 as of 11 am on Wednesday, March 18, according to the Department of Health (DOH) during the government’s “Laging Handa” press briefing aired on state-run PTV-4 on Wednesday.

This means 6 additional patients tested positive for COVID-19 since Tuesday, March 17, when DOH said 187 people caught the virus.

The DOH also reported no new deaths and fatalities still stand at 14 as of 11 am.

Three more patients have already recovered, bringing the total number of recoveries to 7, DOH said.