MANILA, Philippines — There will be no changes in the country’s pandemic response following the detection of the Omicron variant of COVID-19, but the government will strengthen the implementation of existing measures, the Department of Health said Thursday.
In a briefing, DOH Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said the government will intensify border control, detection of cases, implementation of minimum public health standards and vaccination.
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“We won’t change anything. Whatever we are doing right now is the key, the formula for us to be protected against any type of variant. What we’re going to do is to intensify our response, especially with our borders,” Vergeire said in a mix of English and Filipino.
The health official also said it was “not rational” for the country to shut its borders to nations that have only one case of the Omicron variant.
“Of course, public health is still our priority. But for now, it is not rational for us to close our borders to countries that have one case,” Vergeire said.
“In countries where there is one Omicron case, usually it is imported case. What is very important is we close our borders to countries that have local transmission,” she added.
Vergeire assured the public the government will change protocols once needed.
“But for now, this is sufficient for the Philippines.”
‘No need to panic’
The DOH reported Wednesday the detection of the first two Omicron variant cases in the Philippines—travelers from Japan and Nigeria. Both are undergoing isolation in a facility managed by the Bureau of Quarantine.
Early studies suggest that Omicron, the heavily-mutated variant first detected by South Africa, can be resistant to vaccines and is more transmissible than the Delta variant.
But Vergeire said that there is no need to panic.
“We do not need to panic. We do not need to be scared. We just need to be cautious, aware, focused,” she said as she called on the public to continue complying with health protocols.
The Philippines logged 289 new COVID-19 cases Thursday, raising the total to over 2.83 million. Of the figure, only 0.4% were active cases.
The country will remain under Alert Level 2 until the end of the year.