Manila urges caution as Omicron cases rise
MANILA: It’s still too early to declare a local transmission of the deadly and highly infectious coronavirus Omicron sub-variant BA.2.12.1 in the country, a top health department official said on Saturday.
Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire pointed out they have to be careful and need further evidence despite confirmation that a total of 14 persons have been infected in the Philippines by BA.2.12.1 whose adverse impact is being felt in 23 countries, including the US.
“We need evidence so we can analyse and determine if there is a local transmission of the subvariant BA.2.12.1,” Vergeire told a public briefing in a mix of Filipino and English.
Earlier, Vergeire confirmed the detection of 14 BA.2.12.1 infections – 14 on the island province of Palawan and two in Metro Manila. She said the 12 cases sequenced from Palawan were mostly foreign tourists and passengers of a mini-cruise vessel that visited the capital city of Puerto Princesa on April 29.
On the other hand, the two cases sequenced from Metro Manila have no international travel history and belonged “to the same cluster,” Vergeire said. She added both are fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and have manifested only mild symptoms.
However, Vergeire assured that all BA.2.12.1 cases have been successfully isolated, including the first patient, a woman from Finland who visited the Philippines in April.
She also reported there was no surge in the areas where the first Omicron sub-variant cases had been reported. On the national level, she said there was also no significant spike in daily COVID-19 cases.
Between May 6 and 12, an average of 146 new daily cases were reported, according to Vergeire. In comparison, there was an average daily rate of 254 new cases before the surge in Omicron infections in January.
In this light, Vergeire appealed to the people to obey the basic health protocols to prevent the spread of the virus. These include wearing of face mask, observance of social distancing and the ban on mass gatherings.