Presidential Adviser for Entrepreneurship Joey Concepcion is pushing to make the inoculation for COVID-19 booster shots accessible to the general public and to put up a special lane for priority groups.
At the Laging Handa briefing on Friday, Concepcion said he mentioned his proposal to Health Secretary Francisco Duque III.
“Ang sinabi ko kay [Health] Secretary [Francisco] Duque, sana buksan na lang para sa lahat,” Concepcion said.
(I told Secretary Duque to make it open for all.)
“’Yung public isang lugar, pero ‘yung fast lane para sa A1 (medical frontliners), A2 (elderly), A3 (persons with comorbidity). ‘Wag nating pahintay ‘yung iba na gustong magpabakuna. So there can be fast lanes, and there can be for the public’s lane,” he added.
(There can be one site for the public, and a fast lane for A1, A2, A3. We should not make those who want to get vaccinated wait. So there can be fast lanes, and there can be for the public’s lane.)
However, the Department of Health (DOH) on Thursday reminded the public that the general population is not yet eligible for booster vaccination. It also said that the booster doses’ rollout to other priority groups will be implemented in a “phased approach.”
Concepcion said the private sector has enough supply of vaccine doses to serve as booster shots and they are awaiting the government’s go signal to begin the inoculation of their workers.
“We have to vaccinate as fast as possible,” Concepcion said.
“We cannot afford to have another lockdown in 2022. Mahihirapan tayo (It will be difficult). The year 2022 should be the year of a total rebound.”
The Philippines on Wednesday began the inoculation of fully vaccinated healthcare workers with booster doses.
The DOH recommended that health workers use either Moderna, Pfizer, or Sinovac as booster doses regardless of the brand used for the primary series of vaccinations based on the emergency use authorization issued by the Food and Drug Administration.
Sinovac will also be offered as a booster for those that already have Sinovac as their primary series, the department said. — VBL, GMA News
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