The Department of Health is confident that the government’s strict border controls and genome sequencing surveillance are sufficient to prevent the entry of the new Covid variants into the country.
The DOH issued the statement amid the reported spread of the Lamda variant (C.37) that caused Covid surges in more countries.
The Lamda variant contains protein mutations that makes it more infectious and resilient to vaccines.
“We have proven that this [strict border control] is effective since there are currently no Delta variant, which managed to slip into our communities. It has no local case or local transmission,” Health Secretary Francisco Duque III said in an online press briefing on Tuesday.
Last Monday, DOH reported the number of Delta variant cases in the country rose to 19.
All of the said cases came from inbound travelers who underwent the 10-day quarantine period in government facilities and were only allowed to home after their recovery.
Duque said the Philippine Genome Center also continues to conduct regular surveillance nationwide to ensure no new Covid-19 variants are spreading in the country.
Presidential spokesperson Harry Roque said the lack of direct flights from South America, where the Lamda variant infections are concentrated also make its entry into the country unlikely.
He, however, said the government will continue to monitor the spread of said variant to prevent its local spread.