THE Department of Health (DOH) yesterday said the Delta variant of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) has spread to all but one region in the country.
In a virtual press briefing, Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said that based on the last four batches of the samples sequenced by the Philippine Genome Center (PGC), it was observed that the Delta variant has spread in 16 out of the country’s 17 regions.
“Based on the most recent run, all regions have Delta variant cases, except in the Caraga Region,” Vergeire said, explaining that the three previous Delta variant cases reported from Caraga were verified to be returning overseas Filipinos (ROFs).
“Their home addresses are in Caraga but they are found to be ROFs. This means we cannot classify them as local cases in Caraga but as ROFs,” said Vergeire.
Vergeire said the number of Delta variant cases has been increasing from 116 on August 4, to 119 on August 5, 177 on August 11, and 182 on August 12.
Vergeire said that based on the latest PGC sequencing of 338 samples, almost 50 percent were Delta variants. “So we can really see that the proportion of the Delta variant in the country, based on very rough analysis, is really increasing,” she said.
Asked if it means that there is already a community transmission of the Delta variant, the health official said it still cannot be stated officially.
“We assume that there is already transmission in the community. That is an assumption because we still cannot provide evidence for such,” said Vergeire, adding: “You have to remember that this level of transmission is officially declared because of certain evidence that are found in the country.”
During the “Laging Handa” public briefing, PGC Executive Director Dr. Cynthia Saloma said that based on the latest samples that they have sequenced, the Delta variant is now the most dominant variant in the country with 14 active cases and 771 recovered individuals as of August 12.
Saloma said apart from being more infectious than the other variants, the risk of re-infection with the Delta variant is also higher compared to other strains such as the Alpha variant.
She said the Delta variant also appears to cause more severe illness, can spread easily as chicken pox, and that 99.5 percent of deaths occurred among those who have not been vaccinated.
Infectious disease specialist Dr. Edsel Salvana reiterated the need for vaccination especially of the vulnerable sector which accounts for 90 percent of the deaths.
Salvana reiterated that the vaccine is effective in preventing severe or critical COVID cases which eventually prevents the patient form being hospitalized and even from dying.
Meanwhile, Marinduque Gov. Presbitero Velasco Jr. said the province has recorded six Delta cases, prompting the local government to place the province under enhanced community quarantine for 15 days.
Velasco said the Delta cases were reported in Sta Cruz town where they are being closely monitored by health workers.
“What I know is these are active cases, there are from two barangays (in Sta Cruz). There are four cases in one barangay while the other two cases are from another barangay,” said Velasco.
“We dont want them infecting others, that’s why we are carefully monitoring them,” he added.
Velasco said the province has asked the assistance of the PNP Criminal Investigation and Detection Group in tracing the close contacts of the six individuals.
Sta. Cruz town mayor Antonio Uy said an emergency meeting was held on Sunday night to discuss measures to contain the spread of the virus.
“We made sure that contingencies were in place and foods, medicines, tents and isolation units are prepared for the stricter quarantine that will be imposed. Also we checked the available manpower that can be tapped at any time,” said Uy.
The province of Marinduque will be under ECQ until August 31. Velasco said border control will be strict, and only Authorized Persons Outside Residence (APORs) will be allowed to go out.
As for the country’s first Lambda variant case, the DOH said the patient was found to be a 35-year old pregnant woman in Western Visayas.
Vergeire said the patient is “most probably” a local case, and not an ROF.
“It is most probably to be a local case because we saw the case among those sequenced in an area where there is a clustering of cases,” said Vergeire.
She said the case tested positive last July 22 but was asymptomatic. She is already classified as having recovered from COVID-19.
Vergeire said the DOH is coordinating with the city health officer where the patient is residing regarding the additional information on the case and on what community interventions have been done.
“We are going to do a repeat testing as she is currently in her home area,” she added.
The Lambda variant was first identified in Peru back in August 2020, and has been classified as a variant of interest (VOI) by the World Health Organization on June 14, 2021.
The presence of the Lambda variant has been reported in 20 countries. — With Jocelyn Montemayor and Victor Reyes
