Amid the confirmation of the first case of the monkeypox virus in the country, President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. believes that it is not as "scary" as the COVID-19 virus.
During the launching of the "Pinas Lakas" booster campaign on Monday, the chief executive, who has yet to name his Health Secretary, likened the infectious disease to a "smallpox."
"Even then I want to be very clear to everyone this is not COVID. Hindi kagaya ng COVID ito. Hindi nakakatakot kagaya ng COVID yung monkeypox parang smallpox," Marcos said.
Last week, the DOH announced that the Philippines had recorded its first case of monkeypox — a 31-year-old patient who flew in on July 19.
The patient, who had travel histories in countries with documented cases of monkeypox virus, tested positive for the infectious disease through an RT-PCR test on July 28.
The DOH, however, confirmed that the case has already been discharged and is undergoing strict isolation and monitoring at home.
The World Health Organization (WHO) previously declared the infectious disease a "global health emergency."
The US Centers for Disease Control and Preventions said monkeypox can spread through contact with body fluids, sores, or items such as clothing and bedding contaminated with the virus. Person-to-person transmission may also happen through respiratory droplets.
And while the monkeypox virus is part of the same family of viruses as the variola virus, the virus that causes smallpox, the US CDC noted that the virus is rarely fatal.
