The country does not need to lower the COVID-19 status to Alert Level 0 because the economy is already “totally open,” Trade Secretary Ramon Lopez said Sunday.
Talking to radio dzBB, Lopez said with many areas under Alert Level 1,businesses are running at 100 percent, and even the tourism industry is open to both local and foreign tourists.
Lopez said this was discussed at the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF), of which he is a member, and the economic team had concluded that the economy was already open.
He added that the only difference between Alert Level 0 and Alert Level 1 was the mandatory wearing of face masks.
The Department of Health (DOH) on Saturday reported 437 new COVID-19 infections in the country.
This brought the nationwide tally to 3,676,665, and active cases to 43,486, down from 44,149 on Friday.
The top regions with cases in the last two weeks were the National Capital Region (NCR) with 1,894, followed by Region 4A with 766 and Region 6 with 622.
The DOH said recoveries climbed to 3,574,295 while the cumulative death toll reached 58,884.
Nationwide, 24.64 percent of intensive care unit (ICU) beds for COVID-19 patients nationwide were occupied.
Some 22.04 percent of isolation beds in the country were in use, while 13.66 percent of ward beds were occupied.
The DOH said on Saturday it is considering a yearly vaccination against COVID-19.
“Our experts estimate that COVID-19 will be like the flu,” said Health Undersecretary Myrna Cabotaje, speaking in Filipino.
“We have yearly shots for the flu. In case we may need an annual vaccination for COVID, the government is looking atwhether this should be administered to the entire population or only to high-risk and vulnerable individuals.”
Cabotaje said accelerating and expanding the vaccination program was under President Rodrigo Duterte’s 10-point agenda on sustaining and accelerating the country’s economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic through a whole-of-government approach.
“We need to expand our vaccination centers, encourage our citizens to go to the nearest vaccination center, speed up and facilitate the procedures for them to get vaccinated, and remove unnecessary restrictions,” she said.
Cabotaje reported that as of March 24, 65.5 million Filipinos were vaccinated against COVID-19, with 11.7 million booster doses administered.
Vaccinations in this month’s fourth phase of the “Bayanihan, Bakunahan” national vaccination drive surpassed the national government’s target.
Cabotaje said a special vaccination day would be conducted in Region 11, Cebu province, and Cotabato City from March 29 to 31, 2022, and in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao from March 30 to April 1, 2022.
At the same time, Cabotaje said the rollout of the fourth dose of COVID-19 vaccines could start in late April or early May once the Food and Drug Administration approves its emergency use authorization.
“The DOH has already proposed the EUA for a fourth dose for approval of the FDA. Once FDA approves it within the month, then we can start crafting guidelines,” Cabotaje said.
A fourth dose of COVID-19 vaccines is being considered for those who are moderately and severely immunocompromised as well as individuals considered vulnerable to severe forms of COVID-19, Cabotaje said.
“Studies have shown that the fourth dose can be beneficial for people with high risk of severe illness,” she said.
Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said on Wednesday that based on the initial recommendation from the Vaccine Expert Panel, the DOH applied to the FDA for the amendment of COVID-19 vaccines EUA to include a fourth dose for senior citizens and immunocompromised persons.
Cabotaje said one proposal is to have a four-month interval between the third dose and fourth dose of the COVID-19 vaccine.
She added that the FDA will study what brands will be used for the fourth shot but admitted that people may be more inclined to pick a brand that is the same as their booster shot or third dose.
Meanwhile, only 13 percent or 11.7 million have so far been given booster shots of COVID-19 vaccines, Cabotaje said.
“Since we began giving booster shots in November, only a few have availed of it,” she said.
Cabotaje said the booster shot provides added protection against COVID-19, as proven during the Omicron surge, and would also protect the country from future surges.
Also on Saturday, the Philippines received 1.2 million doses of the reformulated Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine for children aged 5 to 11.
The new batch of vaccines procured through the World Bank was delivered at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 3 past 8 p.m., the National Task Force Against COVID-19 said.
Before this shipment, the Philippines received 1,147,000 doses of the reformulated Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine on Friday night.
As of March 24, the Department of Health (DOH) said that 72.81 percent of the target population has been vaccinated.
A total of 736,143 children have been fully vaccinated, while at least 1.8 million children have received their first dose.
The DOH also said that about 8.9 million teenagers have now been fully vaccinated against the virus, with 9.87 million receiving their first shot.
The Philippines started its vaccination program in March 2021.