The Department of Health (DOH) said that a 36-year-old unvaccinated returning overseas Filipino worker is the country's third case of the Omicron variant of COVID-19.

In a virtual press briefing, Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said he was found positive for the Omicron variant last December 18.

"He finished five days of quarantine plus period of isolation before he was able to travel back home," said Vergeire.

"He is on home quarantine in Cavite, is currently asymptomatic, and was retested as negative on December 19," she added.

She said the Filipino worker, who is a seafarer, arrived in Cebu from Qatar, via Qatar Airways on November 28.

He was tested on December 4 under quarantine, and positive for COVID-19 on December 5.

He stayed in isolation until December 16 before being allowed to travel to Cavite on December 17.

Vergeire said the seafarer had three close contacts based on the flight manifest from Qatar Airways.

"We were able to monitor that they are on home quarantine. They were already retested and all of them turned out to be negative," said Vergeire. DMS