Presidential Adviser for Entrepreneurship Joey Concepcion is pushing for a “no booster, no entry” policy to encourage more individuals to get their booster shots, but an infectious disease expert said requiring it may be a difficult move for now.
In an online forum, Concepcion said the country “should now enforce that these booster cards be shown” together with vaccination cards.
“To me, that should be the minimum public health protocol, even without alert levels because it will remind us to take our vaccination on a regular basis,” he said.
In a separate briefing on Thursday, infectious disease specialist Dr. Edsel Salvana reiterated the importance of a booster or third dose, but noted that it will take a while before all eligible individuals are given booster doses.
“Unang-una, malayo pa tayo talaga doon sa mabu-boost natin lahat ng tao sa ngayon, kasi marami pa rin namang hindi nabibigyan ng vaccination, iyong tinatawag natin na primary series,” he said.
“I think na mahirap gawin iyon kasi masyadong maraming tao ang hindi pa natin nabu-boost, and of course, we want to make sure the focus remains on the people na hindi pa nababakunahan,” he added.
He, however, noted that it would be better to have an additional dose, especially for the vulnerable population, due to waning vaccine protection.
Meanwhile, Presidential Adviser for COVID-19 Response Vince Dizon assured the public that the government will continue to intensify the national vaccination program, including the administration of booster shots.
Among the government’s targets for 2022 include the vaccination of 90 million Filipinos by the end of second quarter, provision of 72.16 million boosters for the adult population, and the vaccination of 39 million children with primary series and third dose.
These objectives are in bid to achieve a “wall of immunity” in the country to enter the endemic stage.
“I think we will begin with the transition this February. We just need to bring down the cases to the levels that we had in late last year, below 1,000 cases per day, then we can begin the process of transitioning from a pandemic framework to a more endemic framework,” Dizon said. – Report from Mela Lesmoras/AG
