The coronavirus variant first detected in India has now been officially recorded in 53 territories, a World Health Organization report showed Wednesday.
The update also listed six variants of interest that are being monitored.
One was first discovered in multiple countries, two of them were first found in the United States, while the three others were first discovered in Brazil, the Philippines, and France.
“Virus evolution is expected, and the more SARS-CoV-2 circulates, the more opportunities it has to evolve,” the report said.
The report said the Indian variant (B.1.617) had shown increased transmissibility, while disease severity and risk of infection were under investigation.
LGUs to decide on A4 priority list
The Department of Health on Wednesday said the decision on which economic and state frontliners will be prioritized under the A4 category.
About 22.4 million essential workers belonging to the A4 group are expected to start receiving COVID-19 shots next month.
The Philippines expects to receive about 10 million vaccine doses in June, said Health Undersecretary Myrna Cabotaje.
“We will leave it up to the LGUs to strategize and decide who is most at risk and vulnerable among the A4, depending on their localities,” she said.
Vaccine ‘express lanes’ pushed
Metro Manila Development Authority chairman Benhur Abalos Jr. on Wednesday said “express lanes” for persons belonging to the A1 to A3 groups once inoculation for essential workers start.
Abalos said while global supply remains the biggest problem in the vaccine rollout, the immediate utilization of the jabs once they arrive in the country is the next challenge.
He said Metro Manila is administering 120,000 COVID-19 jabs per day.
BPO firms get 1 million jabs
Business process outsourcing firms have secured some 1 million COVID-19 vaccine shots, Information Technology and Business Process Association of the Philippines president Rey Untal said on Wednesday.
Untal said the BPO industry entered into tripartite agreements with advocacy group Go Negosyo and other partners to secure the jabs, including Moderna and AstraZeneca.
BPO workers belong to the A4 group.
