THE Philippines will resume its use of the anti-malaria drug hydroxychloroquine in clinical trials for treating the novel coronavirus, taking its cue from the World Health Organization (WHO) which cleared the drug after a safety review.

The WHO clearance came out after a careful study by medical experts, Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario S. Vergeire told an online news briefing on Thursday. “We will listen and follow, and we will continue using hydroxychloroquine.”

WHO suspended the use of hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine last week as treatment for the coronavirus disease 2019 after a study published by the Lancet medical journal found that a number of patients who used the drug had died.

The journal cited potentially serious side effects from the drug including heart arrhythmia.

But the WHO said it found no reason to modify the trial protocol after its review.

The Philippines joined the so-called solidarity trial in April along with other countries to test the effectiveness of four possible treatments for the coronavirus.

Experts earlier found the arthritis medicine that is also used to prevent malaria to be a promising treatment for the coronavirus, which has sickened 6.6 million and killed about 388,000 people worldwide.

US President Donald J. Trump last month said he was taking hydroxychloroquine as a preventive medicine against the coronavirus.

Hydroxychloroquine is one of the four drug and drug combinations being used for the WHO’s solidarity trial that seeks to find a vaccine for the novel coronavirus. The others are remdesivir, lopinavir and ritonavir combined, and two drugs plus interferon beta.

In the Philippines, COVID-19 infections rose by 634 to 20,382, the Department of Health (DoH) said yesterday.

The death toll rose to 984 after 10 more patients died, while 95 more patients have gotten well, bringing the total recoveries to 4,248, it said in a bulletin.

Of the new cases, 313 were fresh or test results validated in the past te days, while 321 were validated late, DoH said.

The agency said there were now 52 laboratories that can test COVID-19 samples.

The agency started classifying new infections after a spike as local laboratories boosted their testing capacities.

The spike also coincided with a relaxed lockdown in many parts of the country including Manila, the capital and nearby cities.

Ms. Vergeire said at an online news briefing later in the day the decreasing trend in the number of cases per day as well as increased doubling time of cases and deaths showed improved case management.

Meanwhile, the Philippines now has a daily testing capacity of 42,000, as the government continues to expand targeted testing in highly populated areas.

The government would focus on boosting capacity in Metro Manila, Cebu and other densely populated regions, Vince Dizon, deputy chief enforcer of the National Task Force on COVID-19, said at a separate news briefing on Thursday.

Also yesterday, the Department of Justice said 222 inmates from the facilities of the Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) had infected with the coronavirus. Ten of them have died and 31 recovered.

In a statement, the agency said 48 BuCor staff had caught the virus, four of whom recovered.

The national penitentiary in Muntinlupa City posted the highest confirmed cases with 140 inmates and 30 staff members, followed by the Correctional Institute for Women in Mandaluyong City with 82 inmates and seven employees who tested positive.

Eleven staff members from its national headquarters had also tested positive, it said — Vann Marlo M. Villegas and Gillian M. Cortez

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