DOH: 6 local contacts of first Omicron subvariant case tested negative for COVID-19

Six local contacts of the Finnish female who was the first detected Omicron BA.2.12 carrier in the country have tested negative for COVID-19, the Department of Health (DOH) announced Friday.

The Health Department said the remaining contacts were not tested as they were asymptomatic. Meanwhile, three of the 30 individuals she was with on the flight to Manila have already left the country. 

The DOH said no additional close contacts have been identified but verification and updates are still ongoing.

In late April, the DOH announced that the Philippines had detected its first case of Omicron BA.2.12 in Baguio City in a 52-year-old Finnish female who arrived from Finland on April 2.

Up to 44 close contacts were identified.

Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire earlier said that the BA.2.12 sublineage was “2.5 times more infective but not more severe” than the original Omicron variant. —VBL, GMA News