The Department of Health (DOH) on Tuesday expressed support for the directive of President Rodrigo Duterte to prioritize the vaccination of the National Capital Region (NCR) Plus 8 areas.
The prioritization of Metro Manila, Bulacan, Cavite, Rizal, Laguna, Pampanga, Batangas, Cebu, and Davao is being eyed by the government due to higher risk of COVID-19 transmission because of their population.
The DOH issued the statement on May 25 to clarify articles stating that the health department rejected the prioritization of the NCR Plus 8 in the vaccine deployment.
It added that the statement of Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire “was in response to the recommendation to allocate 90% of vaccines to the NCR Plus” which it described as “inappropriate and inequitable.”
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“There is a continuous need to allocate to other regions especially to cover the remaining A1, A2, and A3 population groups who have not been vaccinated, consistent with the objective of reducing hospitalizations and deaths among high risk population groups,” the statement read.
It added that allocation is still dependent on vaccine supply.
Meanwhile, latest data show that 67% of the vaccine supply is distributed to NCR, Regions 4A, III, VII, and XI. More than 4.3 million doses have been administered nationwide as of May 24. (DOH) AG-rir
