THE Department of Health (DOH) Central Visayas confirmed Monday that 26 new cases of the Delta (B.1.617.2) variant of the virus that causes Covid-19, were detected in the region as reported on Sunday, Aug. 29, 2021.
This brings the total number of Delta variant cases in the region to 99 and marks the first time the variant was detected in Negros Oriental.
Of the 26 new cases of the Delta variant, 24 are local cases while two are returning overseas Filipinos (ROFs).
Dr. Eugenia Mercedes Cañal of the DOH 7 Regional Epidemiology and Surveillance Unit said the 24 new local Delta cases were detected in Cebu City (13 cases), Mandaue City (1), Cebu Province (2), Bohol (4), and Negros Oriental (4).
As for the two ROFs, Cañal said they had undergone their quarantine in the National Capital Region before traveling to Central Visayas.
She said the cases were already endorsed to their respective local government units (LGUs) and the contact tracing activities are currently being conducted by the LGUs.
DOH 7 Director Dr. Jaime Bernadas also said that prior to the release of the information to the public on these Delta cases, they had already informed the LGUs and mayors.
Aside from the mayors, Cañal said they also informed the medical health officers and the physician-hospital organizations of their new Delta cases.
The specimens of the 26 new cases were extracted through RT-PCR swab tests conducted from July 9 to August 9, 2021.
These new cases are among the 516 Delta cases in the country reported by the DOH Central Office on Aug. 29, 2021 that consisted of 473 local cases, 31 ROFs and 12 cases still under verification.
The 26 new cases bring the total number of Delta variant cases in Central Visayas to 99.
Earlier, on Aug. 24, 2021, Cañal had reported that Central Visayas already had 73 cases of the Delta variant, of which 59 were local cases and 14 were ROFs.
Fifty-eight of the 59 local cases were in Cebu, while one was in Bohol. The local cases in Cebu were in Lapu-Lapu City (30), Cebu City (12), Mandaue City (3), Samboan (7), Cordova (2), Argao (1), Boljoon (1) San Fernando (1) and Talisay City (1).
As for the 14 ROF cases, Cebu had 11 of them, Bohol (2) and Siquijor (1). The ROF cases in Cebu were in Talisay City (3), Lapu-Lapu City (2), Consolacion (2), Cebu City (1), City of Naga (1), Argao (1) and San Remigio (1). (KFD)