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Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider National devider Lorenzana won't get Sinovac jab after all. Here's why

Lorenzana won't get Sinovac jab after all. Here's why

Published Mar 1, 2021 08:29 am

Due to a number of reasons that are apparently out of his control, Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana disclosed Sunday night, Feb. 28, that he will not be inoculated with the Sinovac Biotech-made CoronaVac vaccine.

Department of National Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana (MANILA BULLETIN FILE PHOTO)

Lorenzana, chair of the National Action Plan (NAP) on COVID-19, made the revelation after top government officials welcomed the delivery of 600,000 doses of Sinovac vaccines donated by the Chinese government to the country. Of these, 100,000 doses were allotted to the Department of National Defense (DND) and Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP).

"I wanted to be the first to receive the Sinovac vaccine in the DND to build trust and confidence among personnel but health experts advised that those over 59 should not be vaccinated," said the 72-year-old Lorenzana in a tweet.

"If it weren't for age restrictions, I'd be the first to take the shots," he added.
Besides, Lorenzana said medical frontliners are on top of the priority of the government in the vaccine rollout and not Cabinet officials.

CoronaVac had already been granted an emergency use authorization (EUA) by the country's Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

However, the FDA indicated in their EUA that the Sinovac shot is not recommended for use by elderly people due to its varying levels of efficacy.

The FDA said it considered the results of the late stage clinical trials of the Sinovac vaccine which showed that it registered lower efficacy rate among healthcare workers who were directly exposed to the coronavirus compared to healthy people aged 18 to 59 years old.

The FDA, however, maintained that it is still up to the healthcare workers if they will agree to be inoculated with the Sinovac vaccine or wait for a different brand.

To boost the morale of his personnel, Lorenzana said that he will instead personally oversee the vaccination of military and civilian personnel of DND and AFP on Monday, March 1 at the Veterans Memorial Medical Center and V. Luna Medical Center in Quezon City.

Of the 100,000 doses directly allocated for the defense and military, a total of 29,040 doses will be given to the frontline workers at the two military healthcare facilities.

The remaining doses will be distributed to the other bureaus of the DND.

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