By Alec Go
President Rodrigo Duterte on Monday night (June 7) urged COVID-19 vaccine recipients to “find time” to have their second dose administered amid reported missed schedules.
Duterte said the vaccines currently available in the country require a second dose for complete protection, adding that protection is incomplete “without the booster.”
“’Yung nabakunahan na sa first injection niyo, kailangan kayo ng booster, a second injection. Please find time to go back and line there. Line up and show your card, so that they would know that you are receiving the second dose,” he said in his public address.
“Ang medisina nitong mga Sinovac, Sinopharm, and the rest which are available in the Philippines, they require a second dose – a booster. Kayong iisa lang, kulang ‘yan,” he added.
The Department of Health (DOH) said on June 3 that 9% or 113,000 individuals have deferred their second dose inoculation due to various reasons.
The DOH said those who have missed their schedules can go to vaccination sites to have their second dose administered.
Duterte has already instructed local government units and authorities to determine the cause for missed second dose inoculation schedules, and “to take steps” to bring them to the sites.
Meanwhile, he said vaccinated individuals must remain adherent to minimum public health standards since a vaccine “does not guarantee” full protection against COVID-19 transmission.
Based on government data, the Philippines has already administered 5,965,651 vaccine doses from the 8,328,860 deployed vaccines as of June 6. Vaccine czar Sec. Carlito Galvez Jr. said the six-million mark might have been breached today (June 7).
June 6 data shows that 1,520,651 have been given their second dose.
More vaccines coming this month
Galvez announced that the country is expecting 11.058 million doses to arrive this month from Gamaleya, Sinovac, Moderna, and the COVAX facility.
The breakdown is as follows:
- June 9: 100,000 Sputnik V doses
- June 10: 1 million CoronaVac doses
- June 10 to 11: 2.28 million Pfizer doses through COVAX
- June 17: 1 million CoronaVac doses
- June 21: 250,000 Moderna doses for the private sector
- Third week: 2.028 million AstraZeneca doses
Around 10.67 million doses are expected to arrive in July. -jlo
