The United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (US-CDC) has lowered the Philippines’ COVID-19 status to Level 2, following a drop in the number of infections in the country.
In its latest travel advisory, the US-CDC said travelers who are vaccinated and up-to-date with their COVID-19 vaccines are allowed to travel in areas placed under Level 2.
The Philippines was earlier under Level 3.
The Department of Health (DOH), meanwhile, warned the public against taking four or more doses of the COVID-19 vaccine, saying it could be dangerous.
Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said that while COVID-19 jabs are proven safe and effective, people still need to be wary about receiving more doses than what has been approved by experts.
She said they have received reports that several individuals have taken four, five, and even six doses of the anti-COVID vaccine.
“What I can say would be it is dangerous. We have to understand these vaccines are only in their phase three trials. We need to monitor for long-term effects of these vaccines,” Vergeire told ANC’s Headstart.
“People have to be very cautious in using these vaccines beyond their approved use. We still do not know a lot about these vaccines. We just want to stay within the protocol and approved guidelines,” she said.
The DOH has so far recommended a fourth COVID-19 vaccine dose or a second booster for the elderly and the immunocompromised. The government has yet to roll these out.
Vergeire reiterated the importance of COVID-19 booster shots as only 11.8 million out of 45 million eligible fully vaccinated people have received their additional doses.
“They believe they already have enough protection because they had their primary series already and they had an infection,” Vergeire said.
“We have to remember that immunity wanes, both the natural immunity and immunity coming from our vaccines. It gives you additional protection from severe hospitalization and deaths,” she said.
She also reminded the public not to be complacent as the virus was still out there.
Vergeire said the declining number of new COVID-19 cases was brought about by improved vaccination rates and not because fewer tests were being conducted.
In an interview on ANC, she said they expect that severe and critical cases would be low since at least 72 percent of the country’s eligible population have already been fully vaccinated against COVID-19 as compared to the Delta surge in July to October 2021.
“The number of cases are going down. All of the regions have minimal case classification. The positivity rate is all below 5 percent. So meaning, cases are really declining and we are also saying that it’s all because of the vaccines,” Vergeire said.
On the other hand, she said if people relax their adherence to minimum health standards, the daily tally of COVID-19 cases could go up to 670 by the end of April, based on its projections.
The country has fully vaccinated 65.7 million or 73 percent of its target 90 million by June.
