The Philippines on Wednesday logged 237 new COVID-19 cases as it detected its first two cases of the Omicron variant with authorities keeping the entire country under Alert Level 2.
The day's tally brought active cases to 10,193, with a total of 565 new recoveries and 100 new deaths reported.
Overall, a total of 2,836,915 COVID-19 cases have been reported since the pandemic began in March 2020, of which 2,776,273 have recovered and 50,449 died.
Alert Level 2 for the entire country is set to last until Dec. 31 despite the detection of Omicron. The two cases, both international arrivals, were detected from the 48 samples sequenced on Tuesday, the Department of Health said. Both cases are isolated in a Bureau of Quarantine facility.
One is a returning Filipino who arrived from Japan on Dec. 1. He had colds and cough upon arrival and is currently asymptomatic. The other case is a Nigerian national, also asymptomatic, who arrived in Manila on Nov. 30, the DOH said.
To prevent a possible Christmas surge, the Department of Health advised Filipinos to skip buffets and keep holiday gatherings to a minimum.
MORE ON OMICRON:
How to Deal with Anxiety, Uncertainty from Omicron the Grinch
Omicron Spreads Faster and Weakens Vaccines: WHO
Omicron Might Evade Antibodies, But That Doesn't Mean You Don't Have Immunity
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