MANILA, Philippines — The Philippines has detected cases of Omicron subvariant XBB.1.9.1, which is classified by the World Health Organization as a variant under monitoring.
According to the Department of Health’s latest COVID-19 biosurveillance report, the country has 54 XBB.1.9.1 cases.
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Thirty-nine XBB.1.9.1 cases—mostly locals—were detected out of the 199 samples sequenced by the University of the Philippines-Philippine Genome Center from April 3 to 11.
“The variant was initially flagged due to its increasing global prevalence and higher growth advantage,” the DOH said. The Omicron subvariant has been detected in 63 countries.
“However, currently available evidence for XBB.1.9.1 does not suggest any differences in disease severity and/or clinical manifestations compared to the original Omicron variant,” the agency added.
The country’s genome center also detected 30 XBB.1.5 cases, 70 BA.2.3.20 cases, two XBC cases, one CH.1.1 case, one BQ.1 case, and one BA.2 case.
As the government expands the rollout of second booster shots against COVID-19 to the general adult population, Health officer-in-charge Maria Rosario Vergeire stressed that vaccines are safe and effective against all versions of the virus.
The Philippines has confirmed over four million COVID-19 cases, including 66,433 deaths, since the pandemic started in early 2020.