COVID-19 “double mutant” variant community transmission still unsure
Malacañang said that it has yet to be determined whether there’s a community transmission of the COVID-19 “double mutant” variant in the Philippines.
On Tuesday, the Department of Health (DOH) confirmed that there were two cases of double mutant COVID-19 variant in the Philippines.
The variant, which was first identified in India, was called as such because it contained two famous mutations — L452R and E484Q — that could help the coronavirus evade an immune response.
Presidential spokesperson Harry Roque noted in his regular press briefing that the said variant was more transmissible and deadly.
“Sabihin na lang po natin na bagamat ginagawa natin ang lahat para po mapigilan ang pagpasok ng variant na ‘to eh hindi pa naman po tayo sigurado rin na mayroon ng community transmission dahil matindi naman po ‘yung ang ating pag-iingat,” Roque said.
Roque argued that the Philippines had required passengers from India to undergo a 14-day quarantine — 10 days in an institutional quarantine facility or isolation facility and 4 days “under the direct control and supervision” of the local government units (LGUs) where they resided.
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Last April 29, the national government also imposed a temporary travel ban on visitors coming from India. This, despite Health Secretary Francisco Duque III’s insistence that the said variant wasn’t yet a “variant of concern”.
Roque didn’t directly answer whether the entrance of the easily-transmissible and deadly B.1.617 variant will affect the decision of the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) to extend the community quarantine classification in NCR Plus (Metro Manila, Bulacan, Cavite, Laguna, and Rizal), which comprised almost 50% of the country’s economic contributions.
However, Roque said that it was cheaper for the country to invest in strengthening the healthcare capacity rather than to close the economy.
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