PALACE ASSURES MORE THAN 70-M FILIPINOS WOULD BE VACCINATED

The national government assured the public that more than seventy million Filipinos will be vaccinated against COVID-19.

Presidential Spokesperson Secretary Harry Roque Jr said that the Philippines is assured of 40 million doses of vaccines under the COVAX Facility that is worth $84-M, citing the report of Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III during Monday night’s Talk-to-the-People Address of President Rodrigo Roa Duterte.

“This is around 146-M doses to vaccinate 76 million adults,” said Secretary Roque during a press briefing in Malacañang on February 2.

“Around seventy million ang eligible population. Hindi kasali dito ang nasa edad isa hanggang disiotso,” added Sec. Roque.

The Palace official presented in the briefing the infographic that Secretary Dominguez showed during last night’s meeting with the President, which shows the volume of vaccine doses that the Philippines is expecting and the timeline for the delivery of the vaccines. The said infographic shows the volume of vaccine doses that were committed by six different unnamed vaccine brands and the COVAX Facility for the Philippines this 2021, which are expected to arrive in the country starting this month of February until December 2021.

The Philippine Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has already granted Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) approval to two of the six vaccine brands, from which 5 million vaccine doses each are expected by the second week of February to March 31, 2021.

Two of the vaccine brands have current pending EUA applications, which are expected to come out between the second week to the last week of February. The remaining two brands are yet to file for EUA with the FDA.

In terms of sources of funding, five of the six brands were secured through multilateral process, while the other one is through COVAX. The brand that will be coming through the COVAX Facility is expected to be delivered between May 31 to December 31, 2021.

Also in the same press briefing, National Task Force against COVID-19 Chief Implementer and Vaccine Czar Secretary Carlito Galvez Jr. said that the Philippines has now signed five term sheet agreements with vaccine manufacturers and has so far secured 108 million vaccines doses.

Sec. Galvez also lauded the preparations being done by various local government units, and said that massive vaccine roll-out is expected to begin in the third quarter of this year.

Meanwhile, Testing Czar Secretary Vivencio Dizon said that as of date, some eight million tests have already been done, with some 35,000 to 40,000 tests done daily on the average. Sec Dizon also shared the results of the aggressive community testing that they did in Bontoc (1,709 swabbed; 32 tested positive), Isabela (7,643 swabbed; 53 tested positive), and Sagada (418 swabbed, 2 tested positive). OPS-PCOO

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