PAL passenger with monkeypox is not Filipino, says DOH

FILE PHOTO: Department of Health officer-in-charge Rosario Vergeire. INQUIRER FILES

MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Health (DOH) on Friday said they are still verifying the nationality of the monkeypox-positive passenger of a Philippine Airlines (PAL) flight bound for Hong Kong, but the individual is definitely not a Filipino.

DOH officer-in-charge Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said they are checking the passenger’s nationality with the Hong Kong Ministry of Health.

“Nagdaan siya dito sa Pilipinas bago siya umuwi doon sa Hong Kong. He came from other countries as well. Nagpunta siya sa Canada, nagpunta siya sa Amerika. Pagkatapos, nagpunta siya dito sa Pilipinas at saka siya bumalik sa kanyang lugar sa Hong Kong,” Vergeire explained during a media forum.

(The passenger flew to the Philippines before going back to Hong Kong. He came from other countries as well. He went to Canada. He went to America. And then, here in the Philippines, before going back to his place in Hong Kong.)

READ: Passenger of Manila-HK PAL flight tests positive for monkeypox

She added that the passenger only exhibited symptoms of monkeypox upon landing in Hong Kong.

PAL earlier said it had already notified the co-passengers of the monkeypox-infected person on Flight PR300 about the matter.

Likewise, Vergeire said they have already identified the close contacts of the passenger based on their proximity to the patient while on the plane.

“We are closely monitoring them, but up until now, asymptomatic itong lahat ng tao na ito (they’re all still asymptomatic),” she added.

The DOH has so far confirmed four monkeypox cases in the Philippines, and the latest was a 25-year-old Filipino with no documented travel history in any country with verified monkeypox infections.

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