520 new Delta variant cases seen from 748 samples

MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Health on Tuesday said it has detected 520 more cases of the highly transmissible Delta variant of COVID-19. 

This comes amid the Philippines easing more restrictions as it continues to see a decline in newly reported infections per day. 

Some 748 samples were sent for whole genome sequencing but it was not immediately clear if these were collected only recently or in the past months. 

DOH epidemiology chief Alethea de Guzman said in a briefing that Delta now accounts for 32.14% or 5,331 out of the 16,589 samples with lineages. 

As it is, the Delta remains the most common lineage in the country months since local transmission of the variant was declared. 

The Cordillera Administrative Region saw the highest new Delta cases at 78, followed by Bicol Region at 75 and Cagayan Valley at 61.

In Metro Manila, the health official said eight new cases of the Delta were reported. 

De Guzman added the agency also detected 83 cases of the Beta or that first seen in South Africa, as well as 64 of the Alpha or the variant originally identified in the United Kingdom. 

Beta variant cases in the country has stood at 3,562 or 21.47% of total samples with lineages, while Alpha at 3,106 or 18.72%.
 
The Philippines has so far tallied 2.79 million coronavirus cases, with 43,276 deaths to date.