3 of 4 Delta variant carriers are Pinoy seafarers from the MV Eastern Hope now in South Korea

Philippines has 4 new cases of COVID-19 Delta variant, 35 carriers of other strains
Katrina Domingo, Jun 21 2021 https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/06/21/21/philippines-has-4-new-cases-of-co...

MANILA - Four Filipinos have tested positive for the COVID-19 Delta variant, bringing the total number of Filipinos infected with the variant to 17, the government said Monday.

Three of the 4 Delta variant carriers are seafarers from the MV Eastern Hope, a ship currently docked in South Korea, while the fourth case arrived from Saudi Arabia on May 24, 2021, the Department of Health said in a statement.

"Upon detection of the PCR-positive Filipino crew in South Korea, they were repatriated back to the Philippines on June 3, 2021," it said.

"Two cases have completed the 10-day isolation after arrival in the country and were discharged upon certification of recovery, while one is still admitted in a hospital in Metro Manila," it said.

The Delta variant carrier from Saudi Arabia "has completed the mandated isolation" and has been considered as a recovered patient on June 10, 2021, the DOH said.

Of the 17 Delta variant carriers in the Philippines, 1 died while the rest have either recuperated or are still recovering from COVID-19, Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said in an earlier interview.

Aside from the additional Delta variant cases, the DOH said 14 Alpha (B.1.1.7) variant cases, 21 Beta (B.1.351) variant cases, and one Theta (P.3) variant case were also confirmed to have entered the Philippines.

"Of the additional 14 Alpha variant cases detected, 12 are local cases while two are being verified as to whether these are local or returning overseas Filipino (ROF) cases," the DOH said.

Among these 14 Alpha variant carriers, 2 died while 12 have recovered from the disease.

Of the "21 Beta variant cases detected, 20 are local cases while one case is being verified as to whether this is a local or ROF case," the Health department said.

"Based on the case line list, 20 cases have been tagged as recovered and one case is currently active," it said.

There are now 1,085 Alpha variant cases - first detected in the United Kingdom - in the Philippines, while the Beta variant - first detected in South Africa - has infected 1,267 Filipinos, according to data from the DOH.

"The additional Theta variant case is currently being verified as to whether this is a local or ROF case. The case has already been tagged as recovered," it said.

"Currently, the Theta variant is not identified as a variant of concern (VOC) since more data is needed to conclude whether the variant will have significant public health implications," it said.

The DOH earlier said that there were delays in the identification of foreign variants that may have entered the country due to the lack of genome sequencing kits.

"The procurement of reagents for whole genome sequencing for the rest of the year was initiated by a grant of P180 million by the DOH to the UP-PGC last May 2021," the agency said.

"After undergoing the government procurement process, the reagents shall arrive at the UP-PGC this week," it said.