ADVERTISEMENT
Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider National devider 14 cases of Omicron subvariant BA.2.12.1 detected in PH—DOH

14 cases of Omicron subvariant BA.2.12.1 detected in PH—DOH

Published May 13, 2022 03:22 pm

COVID-19 virus2

The Department of Health (DOH) has announced the presence of the Omicron subvariant BA.2.12.1 in the country, involving 14 individuals.

“We have detected 14 individuals with BA.2.12.1,” said Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire in a press briefing on Friday, May 13.

Of the 14, Vergeire said two came from Metro Manila, while the other 12 cases were found in Puerto Princesa, Palawan. “Among 12 from Puerto Princesa, 11 foreign nationals and one local case,” said Vergeire, adding that the two cases in Metro Manila were “local” cases.

Vergeire said the two cases in Metro Manila have received their booster shot and only experienced mild symptoms. They already completed home isolation and are now tagged as recovered.

The two cases in Metro Manila have a total of 39 close contacts who are currently asymptomatic, said Vergeire. “Inaalaam natin ngayon ang kanilang vaccination status at status sa kanilang quarantine (We are still determining their vaccination status as well as their quarantine status),” she said.

Meanwhile, the 28 close contacts of the 12 cases in Palawan “all tested negative” for Covid-19 while their health status and vaccination status are still being verified by the DOH.

Vergeire noted that the Omicron subvariant BA.2.12.1 is different from the BA.2.12 subvariant which was first detected in April, involving a Finnish woman.

“What is the difference between the two? May mga unique mutations ang bawat sublianeage na iyan, kaya naiba ang mga numero (Each sub-lineage has unique mutations, that is why there is a difference in their numbers),” said Vergeire.

“In totality, itong dalawang ito pareho silang (both of them are) more transmissible than the original Omicron variant at saka pareho silang may (and they both have a) possibility ng (of) immune escape based from the studies that are coming out,” she added.

Vergeire said that the Omicron subvariant BA.2.12.1 was also detected in other countries such as in the United States, United Kingdom, and Canada.

Data provided by the DOH noted that both BA.2.12.1 and BA.2.12 are “said to be responsible for the spike in cases and hospitalization in New York in early April.”

“Currently, no evidence suggests that BA.2.12.1 causes more severe disease,” it added.

Related Tags

subvariant ba.2.12.1 Department of Health (DOH) OMICRON VARIANT
ADVERTISEMENT
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1561_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1562_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1563_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}

{{ articles_filter_1564_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.mb-article-details { position: relative; } .mb-article-details .article-body-preview, .mb-article-details .article-body-summary{ font-size: 17px; line-height: 30px; font-family: "Libre Caslon Text", serif; color: #000; } .mb-article-details .article-body-preview iframe , .mb-article-details .article-body-summary iframe{ width: 100%; margin: auto; } .read-more-background { background: linear-gradient(180deg, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000 / 0) 13.75%, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000 / 0.8) 30.79%, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000) 72.5%); position: absolute; height: 200px; width: 100%; bottom: 0; display: flex; justify-content: center; align-items: center; padding: 0; } .read-more-background a{ color: #000; } .read-more-btn { padding: 17px 45px; font-family: Inter; font-weight: 700; font-size: 18px; line-height: 16px; text-align: center; vertical-align: middle; border: 1px solid black; background-color: white; } .hidden { display: none; }
function initializeAllSwipers() { // Get all hidden inputs with cms_article_id document.querySelectorAll('[id^="cms_article_id_"]').forEach(function (input) { const cmsArticleId = input.value; const articleSelector = '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .body_images'; const swiperElement = document.querySelector(articleSelector); if (swiperElement && !swiperElement.classList.contains('swiper-initialized')) { new Swiper(articleSelector, { loop: true, pagination: false, navigation: { nextEl: '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .swiper-button-next', prevEl: '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .swiper-button-prev', }, }); } }); } setTimeout(initializeAllSwipers, 3000); const intersectionObserver = new IntersectionObserver( (entries) => { entries.forEach((entry) => { if (entry.isIntersecting) { const newUrl = entry.target.getAttribute("data-url"); if (newUrl) { history.pushState(null, null, newUrl); let article = entry.target; // Extract metadata const author = article.querySelector('.author-section').textContent.replace('By', '').trim(); const section = article.querySelector('.section-info ').textContent.replace(' ', ' '); const title = article.querySelector('.article-title h1').textContent; // Parse URL for Chartbeat path format const parsedUrl = new URL(newUrl, window.location.origin); const cleanUrl = parsedUrl.host + parsedUrl.pathname; // Update Chartbeat configuration if (typeof window._sf_async_config !== 'undefined') { window._sf_async_config.path = cleanUrl; window._sf_async_config.sections = section; window._sf_async_config.authors = author; } // Track virtual page view with Chartbeat if (typeof pSUPERFLY !== 'undefined' && typeof pSUPERFLY.virtualPage === 'function') { try { pSUPERFLY.virtualPage({ path: cleanUrl, title: title, sections: section, authors: author }); } catch (error) { console.error('ping error', error); } } // Optional: Update document title if (title && title !== document.title) { document.title = title; } } } }); }, { threshold: 0.1 } ); function showArticleBody(button) { const article = button.closest("article"); const summary = article.querySelector(".article-body-summary"); const body = article.querySelector(".article-body-preview"); const readMoreSection = article.querySelector(".read-more-background"); // Hide summary and read-more section summary.style.display = "none"; readMoreSection.style.display = "none"; // Show the full article body body.classList.remove("hidden"); } document.addEventListener("DOMContentLoaded", () => { let loadCount = 0; // Track how many times articles are loaded const offset = [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10]; // Offset values const currentUrl = window.location.pathname.substring(1); let isLoading = false; // Prevent multiple calls if (!currentUrl) { console.log("Current URL is invalid."); return; } const sentinel = document.getElementById("load-more-sentinel"); if (!sentinel) { console.log("Sentinel element not found."); return; } function isSentinelVisible() { const rect = sentinel.getBoundingClientRect(); return ( rect.top < window.innerHeight && rect.bottom >= 0 ); } function onScroll() { if (isLoading) return; if (isSentinelVisible()) { if (loadCount >= offset.length) { console.log("Maximum load attempts reached."); window.removeEventListener("scroll", onScroll); return; } isLoading = true; const currentOffset = offset[loadCount]; window.loadMoreItems().then(() => { let article = document.querySelector('#widget_1690 > div:nth-last-of-type(2) article'); intersectionObserver.observe(article) loadCount++; }).catch(error => { console.error("Error loading more items:", error); }).finally(() => { isLoading = false; }); } } window.addEventListener("scroll", onScroll); });
Join Our Newsletters

Sign up by email to receive news.

© 2025 Manila Bulletin The Nation's Leading Newspaper. All Rights Reserved.