THE Delta subvariant of Sars-CoV-2, the virus that causes the coronavirus disease (Covid-19), is not yet a variant of concern in the Philippines, World Health Organization (WHO) country representative Rabindra Abeyasinghe said on Monday, October 25, 2021.
“We are looking very closely at this. Right now, this is not classified as a variant of interest or variant of concern. The WHO continues to monitor the spread of this particular variant that has been detected,” Abeyasinghe said in a Laging Handa public briefing.
“We want to understand that they process a particular risk more than the Delta variant in terms of transmissibility, in terms of the disease it causes, and its response to vaccines,” he added.
The Delta subvariant, designated as AY.4.2, was first detected in the United Kingdom.
So far, the DOH has yet to detect a confirmed Delta subvariant case in the Philippines.
The Delta variant was tagged as the most transmissible variant of Sars-CoV-2. It has caused resurgence of coronavirus infections and Covid-related deaths in most of the countries worldwide.
The DOH said the Delta variant is now the most common lineage in the Philippines, with a total of 4,811 recorded cases as of October 25.
The agency also recorded a total of 3,479 Beta variant cases and 3,042 Alpha variant cases.
On October 24, the DOH recorded a total 5,279 fresh coronavirus infections in the country, bringing the active cases to 60,957.
The DOH has recorded a total of 2,756,923 Covid-19 cases in the country with 41,793 deaths.
Abeyasinghe urged the public to continue to follow the minimum health protocols, such as the wearing of face masks and face shields and the observance of physical distancing, to prevent the further spread of Covid-19.
The DOH said the Philippines is now at low risk for Covid-19. (SunStar Philippines)