The Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) will not place the National Capital Region under Alert Level Four yet, Acting Presidential Spokesperson Karlo Nograles said Monday.

Nograles said the NCR has not yet met the standards for it to be placed at a higher level even as COVID-19 cases have reset single-day records twice nationally.

The NCR accounts for at least 50 percent of daily cases, DOH data says. Alert Level Three is in effect under NCR until Jan. 15.

''We are actively monitoring the numbers,'' he said. ''We are looking at three things. The first is the two-week growth rate. We know that in Metro Manila it is high. We are also looking at the average daily attack rate which we also see is high.''

Nograles said the government is also looking at the healthcare utilization rate.

''Total bed utilization should also be high. As of the moment, Metro Manila is under moderate risk in total bed utilization. So it's not enough for us to declare Alert Level Four,'' he said. DMS