DOH: Close contacts of Pinoy who tested positive for UK variant of coronavirus already isolated, to be tested

Five close contacts of the 29-year-old Filipino male who tested positive for the UK variant of coronavirus have been isolated and will be tested for COVID-19, the Department of Health (DOH) said Thursday.

Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire made the announcement a day after Philippine authorities reported that the UK variant of the coronavirus—which is more transmissible—is already present in the Philippines due to the male Filipino who tested positive for it after a business trip to United Arab Emirates (UAE).

The male Filipino lives with his mother, girlfriend and two siblings in Quezon City.

“Ite-test pa lang sila [mga close contact] pero wala po silang sintomas,” Vergeire said.

The male Filipino and his girlfriend went to UAE last December on board flight Emirates EK 335 and returned to the Philippines on board flight Emirates 332.

Vergeire said that among the 159 passengers on board Emirates EK 332, 92 or 58% have been contacted by authorities and 52 of the 92 responded.

Twenty-three of the 159 passengers were seated in four rows sitting in front, behind or at the side of male Filipino and his girlfriend who went with him during the trip to UAE.

According to  Vergeire, those who did not respond either had unattended phones, number cannot be reached, wrong number or rejected calls of contact tracers.

“The DOH is encouraging passengers to actively reach out to public health authorities for contact tracing,” Vergeire said.

Health Secretary Francisco Duque III said that close contacts up to third degree will be covered by the contact tracing efforts of authorities.

The DOH already recommended the banning of travelers from the UAE alongside 30 other countries such as the United States and the United Kingdom due to the presence of a UK variant of the coronavirus there. — RSJ, GMA News