As you saw in yesterday's press release, the Ministry said quote, "Some research has shown that the BA.4 and BA.5 subvariants may evade the protection of "neutralizing antibodies" from previous infection and vaccination by three to four times more than prior variants and subvariants." End quote.
During today's press conference, the media asked Dr. Diaz-Musa to explain that. She made it clear that if members of the public have been infected with COVID in the past or if they have received their vaccine doses and booster shots, these subvariants can still get past their body's immunity to previous forms of the virus. According to Dr. Diaz-Musa, these "neutralizing antibodies" are the body's first line of defense. Here's her explanation in detail:
