MANILA, Dec. 16 (Xinhua) — The Philippines’ Department of Health (DOH) reported 289 new COVID-19 infections on Thursday, pushing the number of confirmed cases in the Southeast Asian country to 2,837,016.

The DOH also reported that 47 more people died from COVID-19 complications, bringing the country’s death toll to 50,496.

Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said the DOH has not detected local transmission of the Omicron variant after identifying two imported cases of this mutant strain in the Philippines. Both are asymptomatic and in a quarantine facility.

Vergeire told an online briefing that the DOH has traced six passengers and all returned negative swab test results.

The DOH reported below 500 cases since Dec. 10 and below 1,000 since Nov. 24. It reported its highest caseload on Sept. 11, with 26,303 cases.

The Philippines, which has a population of around 110 million, has tested more than 23 million people since the pandemic.

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