Negros braces for threat from Delta strain

Over the weekend, Negros Occidental Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson urged Negrenses to remain calm after the Department of Health (DoH) confirmed two cases of the Delta Covid-19 variant in Western Visayas.

The governor appealed for Negrenses to cooperate by wearing face masks and face shields as well as observing physical distancing.

He also urged residents of the province, especially those under the A2 category (senior citizens), to get and complete their vaccination.

Lacson said they have already been advised by the DoH in Western Visayas to prepare over the possible entry of the Delta variant, which was first detected in India.

He added that the country’s health-care system may face difficulties if the Delta variant spreads beyond the control of health authorities just like what happened in India and this month in Indonesia.

The governor said he hopes that the province will be able to achieve herd immunity at the soonest possible time in order to thwart the spread of the Delta variant.

He called on the national government to immediately open the vaccination program for all categories.

Last week, two people from Antique were confirmed to have been infected with the Delta variant.

Later, one of the patients died from the illness while the other managed to recover.

The DoH is still conducting an investigation as to how the two people got infected with the Delta variant even though the two did not have any travel history.