QUEZON CITY, (PIA) -- The Department of Health (DOH) insists that the COVID-19 vaccine is still the best defense against the highly transmissable disease.

The DOH released the statement in rection to the OCTA Group member who expressed that the Omicron variant is a natural vaccine.

The member also said that those who recover from the Omicron variant will get antibodies that will provide protection to the other variants.

DOH Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire, however, opposed the said opinion.

"The World Health Organization pronounced that the Omicron variant is still a virus and not a natural vaccine," Vergeire said.

“The DOH states that the more transmission, the more the virus can mutate and replicate. While we recognize natural immunity, the DOH emphasizes the importance of vaccine-induced immunity.”

“With the vaccine, we have lower chances of getting severe to critical symptoms. Likewise, in vaccines, it does not only provide protection against the virus but also protection to people around you, especially your loved ones,” Vergeire added.

“By properly following these protocols, we help in mitigating the pandemic. We would like to avoid another Delta scenario where our hospitals were fully congested,” she said. (PIA-NCR)