Seven of the eight identified close contacts of two Omicron variant cases in the country were negative for COVID-19.
Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said seven negative results were immediately subjected to the COVID-19 test.
It was learned that the 48-year-old returning Filipino from Japan only had one close contact while aboard Philippine Airlines flight PR 0427.
“Close contact had a negative RT-PCR released last December 4 based on the arrival line list. You may be wondering why there is only one close contact for our 48-year-old male from Japan. It was because he was seated in a business class, and it was just one passenger with him in this business class section,” said Vergeire.
The 37-year-old Nigerian national from Nigeria had seven close contacts aboard Oman Air flight number WY 843.
Six of them have been released from quarantine after testing negative, while one is still verified.
“The reason why there were just seven close contacts is because the foreign national sat at the very end of the plane so we only counted those in front of him and on his side,” said Vergeire.
7 close contacts of 2 Omicron cases negative for COVID-19
Vergeire explained that not all fellow passengers are considered close contacts. All the passengers were first quarantined, and those who tested negative were released from isolation.
According to a World Health Organization (WHO) official, the variant should still not be ignored even though initial studies show that it only causes mild COVID-19.
Omicron can still cause chronic COVID-19, especially in senior citizens, the sick, and the unvaccinated, according to the WHO technical lead for COVID-19, Dr. Maria Van Kerkhove.
“We do have some deaths associated with omicron, and that’s what we expected because omicron will circulate among the different populations,” she said.
The Philippines are not accepting foreign travelers from red list countries, including Andorra, France, Monaco, Northern Mariana Islands, Réunion, San Marino, South Africa, and Switzerland.
In red list countries, only Filipinos coming from the government or non-government initiated repatriation flights or Bayanihan flights may enter.
Visit our Facebook page for more news updates.