Philippines Suffers Region’s Worst Omicron-Driven Surge

The Philippines again tops Southeast Asia in daily Covid-19 infections, with record cases last week prompting tighter restrictions, disrupting businesses and filling up hospitals. While the highly contagious omicron variant was detected in most of the region, only the Philippines suffered an exponential rise in infections. The government blamed the spike on complacency in mask-wearing and distancing during the Christmas holidays, when looser curbs to support a fragile economic recovery allowed families and friends in the Catholic-majority nation to gather, even as the vaccine rate is among the region’s lowest.