MANILA, Philippines — The Philippines has recorded its third case of the Omicron variant—a Filipino who returned from Qatar last month.
The 36-year-old male overseas Filipino worker arrived at the Mactan-Cebu International Airport via Qatar Airways 924 on November 28, Department of Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said Monday. The patient had travel history to Egypt.
According to Vergeire, the patient underwent isolation in Cebu until December 16 after testing positive for COVID-19 on December 5. The patient, who is asymptomatic, is now undergoing home quarantine in Cavite.
The results of the latest batch of genome sequencing were released on Saturday. The patient was tested again on Sunday and his test yielded a negative result.
“The case is currently finishing his home quarantine in Cavite and has remained to be asymptomatic since arrival,” Vergeire said.
Authorities identified three close contacts of the individual. Vergeire said all underwent home quarantine and tested negative for COVID-19.
Last week, health authorities detected the country’s first two cases of the heavily-mutated Omicron variant, which has been classified as being “of concern” by the World Health Organization.
Early studies suggest that Omicron is more transmissible than the Delta variant.