6 travelers from India test positive for COVID-19 —DOH

Six travelers from India who arrived in the Philippines before stricter border restrictions took effect tested positive for COVID-19, the Department of Health (DOH) said Wednesday.

Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said 110 travelers from India have undergone COVID-19 testing.

“Anim (Six) turned out to be positive and it is now submitted to the Philippine Genome Center for whole genome sequencing,” she said in an online briefing.

“Meron pong anim na hanggang ngayon ay nilo-locate pa rin natin (There are six others who are still being located),” she added.

The Philippines imposed a temporary ban on travelers from India to block the entry of a new coronavirus variant first detected there. 

Imposed of April 29, the ban will end on May 14. Travelers who were in transit or arrived in the Philippines before it took effect were not covered. 

“That’s the hope, that we can prevent the entry of specific variants into the country,” Vergeire said.

Also, the DOH will recommend that incoming travelers be tested for COVID-19 seven or eight days from their arrival, when their viral load is high, to weed out positive cases. 

“Kahit ano pa pong variant… kailangan lagi po tayong protektado (Whatever the variant may be, we need to stay protected) so continue doing the minimum public health standards,” Vergeire said.

So far, the Philippines has recorded 1,075 cases of the B.1.351 (South Africa) variant, 948 cases of the B.1.1.7 (United Kingdom), 157 cases of the P.3 (Philippines), and two cases of the P.1 (Brazil) variant. —LBG, GMA News