Appears In Bali, BA.4 And BA.5 Subvariants Called The Ministry Of Health Causes Of COVID-19 Cases In Several Countries

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JAKARTA - Spokesperson for the Ministry of Health (Kemenkes) Mohammad Syahril said that the new Omicron BA.4 and BA.5 subvariants were the cause of the increase in COVID-19 cases in several countries in the world.

"The increase in cases in several countries is associated with the presence or increase of BA.4 and BA.5 cases," said Syahril as quoted by Antara, Friday, June 10.

He said that the report from the Global Initiative on Sharing ALL Influenza Data (GISAID) contained reports of 6,903 BA.4 subvariance sequences from 58 countries. The five countries with the most sequences were South Africa, the United States, Britain, Denmark and Israel.

Meanwhile, the BA.5 subvariant has 8,687 sequences from 63 countries. The five countries with the most BA.5 squencing were the United States, Portugal, Germany, the United Kingdom and South Africa.

"From the report, it was conveyed that the transmission of BA.4 and BA.5 has the possibility of spreading faster than the previous omicron. However, the severity of the disease is no indication of more severe pain," he said.

However, Syahril asked the public to remain vigilant considering that the new Omicron subvariant has the ability to reduce monoclonal antibody therapy and is able to avoid or escape the immunity that already exists in a person, either from vaccination or naturally.

"What we may need to be aware of is immune escape, meaning that it avoids someone's immunity," he said.

Therefore, he asked the public to remain disciplined in implementing health protocols.

"Health protocols are the first step, in addition to vaccination, of course we don't want another spike in cases like the previous Delta and Omicron variants," he said.

Syahril added that the easing of wearing masks outdoors will be evaluated if there is an increase in cases due to the new subvariance.

"Of course we don't want another spike in cases. Health protocols are our obligation, also for those who are sick and have comorbidities, they are required to wear masks," he said.