By ANALOU DE VERA
The new coronavirus variant that was first detected in the United Kingdom (UK) has not yet been detected in the Philippines, the Department of Health (DoH) said Saturday.
“This is to clarify that as of Jan. 2, 2021, the Philippine Genome Center has not detected the UK variant in the country. All RT-PCR positive specimens from countries with confirmed UK variant are to undergo genome sequencing beginning Monday, Jan. 4, 2021,” the DoH said in a statement.
The DoH said that it is closely monitoring with other concerned agencies for stricter border surveillance.
“Rest assured that the DoH is working with relevant agencies to ensure the stricter measures of control are being implemented in all ports of entry,” it said.
“Meanwhile, we urged everyone to keep practicing the minimum public health standards – the only universally effective protocol against any mutation, variant, or strain,” it added.
The government has imposed a temporary travel ban on travelers from 21 countries that reported cases of the new variant of the COVID-19 virus – United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Iceland, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Lebanon, Netherlands, Singapore, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and United States.
Meanwhile, the DoH said 1,097 new cases of COVID-19 were recorded in the country Saturday, raising the number of active cases to 27,721.
Davao del Norte has the most number of new cases with 65, Davao City with 69, Laguna with 53, Batangas with 48, and Cavite with 43.
Five more patients died, bringing the death toll to 9,253. The number of recoveries increased to 439,942 with 47 new survivors.
The DoH said there are 476,916 confirmed cases since the first infection was detected in January last year.
