Mga magsasaka sa agusan del sur, kaagapay rin ang department of agrarian reform sa pagtugon sa food security

2.5M persons boosted vs. Covid-19 thru PinasLakas drive

The PinasLakas campaign has vaccinated 30,363 senior citizens and administered first booster doses to 2,558,086 individuals as of September 14. In an online forum, Department of Health Public Operations Center Division Chief, Dr. Carmela Granada, said the number of fully vaccinated elderly is only 2.83 percent of the 1,074,110 target for the age group. The number of boosted individuals represents 10.73 percent of the 23,840,032 target for the general population. “By the end of 2022, our goal is to reach 70 percent of the total population in order to provide immunity to a majority of our community and to protect the population who cannot protect themselves. So, this 70 percent coverage is equivalent to 78.1 million Filipinos,” Granada said.

(PNA photo by Gil Calinga)

percent were not fully vaccinated.

There are 72,810,132 or 93.23 percent fully vaccinated Filipinos and 18,658,487 or 23.89 boosted individuals to date, she added.

Citing data on coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) cases seen in health facilities from July 1 to September 11, Granada urged those yet to receive their primary series of Covid-19 jabs to get inoculated.

Of the 37,025 Covid-19 cases recorded for that period, about 44 “About 8.11 percent of those not fully vaccinated became severe or critical, 9.47 percent resulted in death, almost twice versus the fully vaccinated,” Granada said.

She noted that fully vaccinated individuals were among the Covid-19 cases admitted to the health facilities but only 5.98 percent of them became severe or critical and only 4.59 percent resulted in death. (PNA/Ma. Teresa Montemayor)

Covid-19 vax for kids aged 4, below still under study: DOH

The Department of Health (DOH) is still studying the vaccination of children four years old and below against the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19). In a media forum on Tuesday, DOH officer-incharge Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said such vaccination would need to go through the process of evaluation before it could start in the country.

(PNA file photo by Ben Briones)

“Patuloy pa rin pong pinag-aaralan ito ng ating mga eksperto, although, nababalitaan na natin at nababasa sa ibang bansa ngayon (Our experts are studying this, although, we’ve heard and read in other countries now) that they already have evidence,” she added.

Infectious disease expert Dr. Edsel Salvaña said the United States has approved the Covid-19 vaccination for children five years old and below. He noted this measure is “very important”. “Habang may butas po tayo sa ating immunity wall, lalo na doon sa mga below five years old, pwede po iyan maging parang reservoir ng virus at pwede pong nagmumutate diyan iyong virus (If we have a hole on our immunity wall, especially among below five years old, that could be a reservoir of virus at the virus can mutate there),” he said.

“We’re thinking that it’s just a matter of time na maaprubahan dito and hopefully maru-rollout na rin para mas mabawasan iyong pwedeng mahawa at magkaroon ng severe Covid dito sa Pilipinas (for that to be approved here and hopefully rolled out to lessen the ones who could be infected and have severe Covid-19 here in the Philippines),” he added.

As of Sept. 12, almost 72.8 million Filipinos have been fully vaccinated. Of the tally, more than 9.9 million are adolescents while 4.9 million are young children.

More than 18.6 million individuals have received their first booster dose and more than 2.5 million have received their second booster shots. (PNA/ Ma. Teresa Montemayor)