DOH confirms UK, South Africa COVID variants in all Metro Manila cities

Updated Mon, March 22, 2021 at 5:50 PM Published Sat, March 20, 2021 at 2:54 PM

The Department of Health (DOH) confirmed that two coronavirus variants of concern, the UK variant (B.1.1.7) and the South African variant (B.1.351), are now present in all cities within Metro Manila.

As of March 22, 2021, the Philippines has detected 223 cases of the B.1.1.7 variant with 167 recoveries and 6 deaths, and 152 cases of the B.1.351 variant with 86 recoveries and 4 deaths.

The country also reported its first case of the highly transmissible Brazil variant (P.1), found in a recovered returning overseas Filipino.

Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire stated that these variants contributed to the recent surge in COVID-19 cases, but poor compliance with health protocols remains the root cause.

The DOH is still working with the World Health Organization (WHO) to verify the extent of the variants' transmission.

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COVID-19 Department of Health World Health Organization Maria Rosario Vergeire

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