(Eagle News) — COVID-19 cases in the Philippines rose to 2,833,878 after the Department of Health reported 544 additional cases.
According to the DOH, of the total cases, 14977 were active.
Of these, 688 were asymptomatic, 7166 were mild, 3801 were moderate, 2433 were severe, and 889 were critical.
Recoveries rose to 2,769,914 with the addition of 734 recoveries.
The COVID-19 death toll is now at 48,987, with the additional 235 deaths.
Countries around the world are now monitoring a new COVID-19 variant that was initially blamed for the surge of COVID-19 infections in South Africa.
The Philippines has put in place new quarantine and testing protocols for travelers allowed to enter the country in a bid to prevent the variant from entering.
The DOH has acknowledged, however, that the entry of the Omicron variant into the Philippines was not a matter of if but a matter of when.
Italian scientists have released images of the Omicron variant, showing its over 30 genetic changes, half of which were concentrated in the part of the spike protein that binds to the human ACE.
This is the enzyme the virus attaches to in order to cause an infection in the person.
The findings have prompted the researchers to say that the variant has adapted well to humans.
The World Health Organization has said Omicron could also evade existing immunity against COVID-19 and could cause “future surges of Covid-19, which could have severe consequences.”
So far, the variant has been reported in Australia, Japan, Hong Kong, India, South Africa, Germany, The Netherlands, among others.