Pinoy seaman who arrived from UAE was positive for Indian variant B1.617, now asymptomatic

Two travelers from Middle East test positive for Indian variant
Red Mendoza May 11, 2021 https://www.manilatimes.net/2021/05/11/news/2-travelers-test-positive-fo...

TWO travelers who arrived in the Philippines from two Middle East countries tested for the B1.617 variant, which was first detected in India, but they have now since recovered, according to the Department of Health (DoH).

The B1.617, which has been declared as “a variant of concern” by the World Health Organization (WHO), is said to be the reason behind the surge of cases in India.

According to Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire, the two positive individuals were from the 46 samples sequenced by the Philippine Genome Center on May 8 and neither had a travel history in India nor did they pass India.
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This is separate from the 155 passengers who arrived from India before the travel ban was announced by the Philippine government, where five were found positive for the B1.617 variant.

Of the two travelers, one came from Oman on April 10 and was swabbed on April 15. He was isolated in a hotel in the National Capital Region (NCR) and recovered on April 26.

He then went into home quarantine until May 10 in his town in Region 12. His last RT-PCR (reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction) test on May 3 was negative and he is now asymptomatic.

The second case is a seaman from the United Arab Emirates who arrived in the country on April 19 and was swabbed on April 24.

He was placed in an isolation facility in Clark and recovered on May 6. The person is currently asymptomatic.

Dr. Edsel Maurice Salvana, DoH Technical Advisory Group member, assured the public that these two individuals were no longer considered infectious as it has been more than two weeks since they tested positive for the Indian variant.

Vergeire cited the detection of the variant was due to the intensified surveillance of the Philippine Genome Center, and stressed that following minimum health standards will prevent its further transmission.