To address the supply shortage for the coronavirus vaccine, President Rodrigo Duterte has ordered National Task Force Against COVID-19 chief implementer and vaccine czar Secretary Carlito Galvez Jr. to allow private firms to import the jabs “at will.”
“I have ordered Secretary Galvez to sign any and all documents to allow the private sector to import at will,” he said in his televised briefing Monday night.
“Our next delivery of vaccines is supposed to be two million doses, but there is no assurance as to when these will arrive,” Duterte said.
He said many private firms in the country want to purchase vaccines for their employees.
“You know the reason why? So that the economy can be opened,” he said.
The private sector will be allowed to purchase vaccines “immediately,” Duterte said.
“There are so many restrictions, and workers come from all places, so it’s doubly hard for government to… Let’s be frank, the 1.2 million that have arrived are just enough for the frontliners, the health workers,” he said.
The number of vaccines the country has received has been affected by the jabs being “shanghaied” by other countries in an international “ruckus” that is causing the hold-up of vaccine delivery, Duterte said.
Earlier in the day, the President witnessed the arrival of the government’s first procurement of COVID-19 vaccines totaling 1 million doses from Sinovac Biotech Ltd.
The shipment of CoronaVac vaccines was airlifted on a commercial flight from Beijing, China.
Duterte and several Cabinet members inspected the crate containing the vaccines and proceed with the ceremonial turnover of the CoronaVac vials.
Flag carrier Philippine Airlines handled the transportation of the shipment, which landed in Manila around 4 p.m.
PAL spokesperson Cielo Villaluna said the airline used its A330 aircraft for this all-cargo charter undertaking.
This was the third shipment of CoronaVac vaccines from Sinovac Biotech Ltd. that arrived in the Philippines since February of this year.
The first two batches were donated by the Chinese government and formed part of the nation’s current inoculation drive for medical frontliners and health care workers.
Galvez, Jr. said majority of the procured vaccines will be arriving in the third quarter and fourth quarter of 2021.
With the steady supply, the government aims to inoculate 500,000 Filipinos weekly in at least 4,500 vaccination sites across the country.
Moreover, the government has already signed agreements with other pharmaceutical companies for the procurement of COVID-19 vaccines such as AstraZeneca, Moderna and Novavax.
Customs Commissioner Rey Leonardo Guerrero, meanwhile, assured the public that the agency will continue to expedite the processing, clearance and release of vaccines and related shipments.
The Department of Health (DOH) on Monday said it aims to have all health workers included in the vaccination master list by March 31 as the country continues to inoculate members of priority sectors.
Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said the DOH had given implementing units until end of March to identify all health care workers.
“We also have called on all health care professional societies, dental associations, midwife associations and others to get their members master listed by local governments for us to exhaust all health workers,” Vergeire said.
Vergeire earlier said the government was still seeking out some 600,000 health workers, who may not be affiliated with any hospital or clinic, for inclusion in the vaccination master list.
The DOH said about 1.8 million health workers, 9 million senior citizens, and 14.5 million persons with co-morbidities form the top three priority groups for vaccination.
A total of 656,331 individuals have gotten the first dose of the vaccine as of March 27.
The DOH said people with any of seven co-morbidities linked to severe illness or death from COVID-19 will be inoculated during the simultaneous vaccination of the top three priority groups.
Dr. John Wong of the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF)’s data analytics team said persons with the following co-morbidities are at higher risk of severe disease, intensive care unit admission, or death due to COVID-19, according to 2020 data: chronic respiratory disease; hypertension; cardiovascular disease; chronic kidney disease; malignancy; diabetes mellitus; and obesity.
“Including persons with co-morbidities in the vaccination priority groups will relieve pressure on the health system and save lives,” Wong said in a briefing.
“Because of the current scarcity of vaccines, we have to prioritize those at highest risk for hospitalizations and deaths,” said Wong.
Vergeire said individuals with any of the said co-morbidities will need to present a medical certificate issued within the last 18 months or a prescription given over the past six months indicating their condition.
“All of these will be evaluated by our vaccination sites,” Vergeire said.
The DOH was set to release guidelines on the simultaneous vaccination of health workers, senior citizens, and persons with co-morbidities later Monday.
Not all persons with co-morbidities will be eligible for the current vaccine rollout due to the limited supply.
The DOH said 979,200 doses of AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccine initially expected this month will arrive in the country in April or early May.
Vergeire said the World Health Organization (WHO), which co-leads the COVID-19 Vaccines Global Access (COVAX) Facility informed the Philippine government that there could be some delays in the delivery.
Vaccine czar Secretary Carlito Galvez Jr. previously said the doses would be delivered on March 22.
