DOH identifies 3 close contacts of the 10 Omicron cases reported Friday

The Department of Health on Monday said that they have identified three close contacts of the 10 new Omicron COVID-19 variant cases in the country.

At a virtual briefing, Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said that of these three close contacts, one tested negative and the two others are subject for retesting.

“Meron tayong identified na tatlong close contacts kung saan isa ay nakapag-test na, negative siya. ‘Yung dalawa, for retesting pa and are still under quarantine,” she said.

(We have identified three close contacts and one has tested negative. The two others are still for retesting and are under quarantine.)

The DOH reported the ten additional Omicron cases on Friday, December 31, 2021, bringing the total Omicron caseload in the country to 14.

Three were local cases: two in Bicol and one in the National Capital Region.

Meanwhile, of the 11 imported cases, nine were returning overseas Filipinos and two were foreign nationals.

Vergeire said that all of them were either asymptomatic or had mild disease and have finished the minimum 10-day isolation period.

Meanwhile, Vergeire added that the one close contact of the first Omicron patient in the country tested negative for COVID-19. Same goes with the second patient’s seven co-passengers and the third patient’s 30 co-passengers.

“Among Patient 4’s 24 co-passengers, tatlo ang nag-positive [three tested positive], 15 tested negative, while the other six are still being verified. Details on the contact tracing of the other infected patients are still being verified,” she added.

She however ensured that all local Omicron cases had also been located, traced, and completed the isolation period as required by the Inter-Agency Task Force and had been tagged as recovered prior to release of genome results.

On Monday, the department reported 4,084 additional COVID-19 infections, bringing the country’s total tally to 2,855,819.

Total recoveries reached 2,779,241, with 497 new ones, while 16 new COVID-19 fatalities raised the death toll to 51,586.

Health Secretary Francisco Duque III earlier said that the Omicron variant may already be responsible for this rise in COVID-19 cases in the country. — BM, GMA News