Manila, Jan. 15, (dpa/GNA) – The Philippines on Friday extended a ban on the entry of travellers from more than 30 countries where a more contagious strain of the coronavirus first detected in Britain has been reported.
The ban was supposed to expire on Friday, but the restriction will now be in effect until the end of the month “to curb the spread of the variant in the country,” presidential spokesman Harry Roque said.
“Travellers from Britain, Denmark, Ireland, Japan, Australia, Israel, the Netherlands, China, Hong Kong, Switzerland, France, Germany, Iceland, Italy, Lebanon, Singapore, Sweden, South Korea, South Africa, Canada, Spain, the United States, Portugal, India, Finland, Norway, Jordan, Brazil, Austria, Pakistan, Jamaica, Luxembourg, and Oman are prohibited from going to the Philippines,” he said in a statement.
Filipinos from these countries are allowed to come home, but will have to undergo a strict facility-based 14-day quarantine even with a negative RT-PCR test result.
The extension of the entry ban came after health authorities confirmed that a 29-year-old Filipino real estate agent was found to have been infected by the new strain.
The patient travelled with his girlfriend to Dubai in December for a business meeting and returned to Manila last week. The girlfriend tested negative for the coronavirus. Both have been isolated, and their contacts placed under quarantine.
GNA