Hitting the target of 50 million fully vaccinated individuals is possible by yearend as the government accelerates COVID-19 vaccine coverage, an adviser to the pandemic task force said Saturday.
At the Laging Handa briefing, Dr. Ted Herbosa, special adviser to the National Task Force Against COVID-19, said the rollout was moving closer to one million jabs a day. The government has vowed to hit 1.5 million jabs a day in light of the steady arrival of vaccines.
Asked if the 50 million full vaccinations would be achieved by the end of 2021, Herbosa replied, “Oh yes, definitely.”
He cited government data showing that more than 58 million doses have been administered since the immunization campaign began in March.
The number of fully vaccinated Filipinos stood at 27.1 million as of October 29.
“Our full vaccination rate is increasing. We are currently at 32%. So hopefully 50% would be fully vaccinated by the end of December,” Herbosa said in a mix of English and Filipino.
The Philippines has received more than 100 million vaccine doses from seven manufacturers since February 28.
Herbosa said the government would craft a system to ensure that vaccines that have ultra-cold storage requirements such as Pfizer and Moderna will be administered as soon as possible.
“The only solution we are looking at is what we call the on-time delivery, that after the vaccines are given to the LGU (local government unit), the vaccines should be immediately administered to those who need them,” he said.
Herbosa said the government would also tap nursing, dental, and medical students as vaccinators.
At least 17 colleges and universities, mostly in Metro Manila, have agreed to have their facilities used as vaccination sites to help the government in its inoculation program against COVID-19, Commission on Higher Education Chairperson Prospero de Vera III said on Wednesday. — with a report from Jamil Santos/VBL, GMA News
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