Chile calls for COVID-19 vaccination after reporting Omicron variant case

2021-12-06 22:05:21 GMT2021-12-07 06:05:21(Beijing Time) Xinhua English

SANTIAGO, Dec. 6 (Xinhua) -- The Chilean government on Monday called on people to get vaccinated against COVID-19, after reporting the first imported case of the Omicron variant over the weekend.

"Chile has a sufficient quantity of vaccines available," Health Minister Enrique Paris said.

The official warned of the "consequences" that unvaccinated people could suffer if infected with the new variant.

"The virus seeks out people who are not vaccinated and don't have antibodies. Obviously, the new variant Omicron, which we are studying, is going to seek out those who are not vaccinated," Paris said.

On Saturday, health authorities reported that the Chilean resident infected with the Omicron variant arrived in the capital Santiago on Nov. 25 on a flight from Ghana.

The passenger submitted a negative COVID-19 test beforehand, but tested positive at the airport, leading to genomic sequencing that confirmed the presence of the Omicron variant.

Paris noted that vaccination in the South American country has led to a 20 percent reduction in the number of patients in a week.

He also said the number of daily infections is currently below 2,000, while the number of seriously hospitalized patients is less than 700. Enditem

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