DOH eyes 'borrowing' vaccine supplies of health facilities with low uptake of COVID-19 vaccines
The Department of Health (DOH) is eyeing to “borrow” the vaccine supplies of health facilities with “low uptake” of vaccines in order to vaccinate more medical frontliners in areas with a high number of new coronavirus disease (COVID-19) cases.

“May mungkahi si Mayor Marcy Teodoro ng Marikina na habang sumasadsad dito ang kaso ng COVID, bakit hindi muna unahin na lagyan ng mas maraming bakuna (Mayor Marcy Teodoro of Marikina suggested that while the COVID cases are increasing (in specific areas), why not give more vaccines to those areas),” said DOH Secretary Francisco Duque III in a radio interview on Friday, March 19.
“Ang gusto ko linawin ngayon ay hihiramin lang natin yan habang kulang ang bakuna at rumaragasa ang COVID sa NCR (National Capital Region), sa Region 4A (Calabarzon), sa Region 3 (Central Luzon), sa Region 7 (Central Visayas) at sa CAR (Cordillera Administrative Region). Kung pwede. Sa mga hospital lamang na mababa pa yung uptake (What I want to clarify now is that we will only borrow it while there is still limited supply of vaccines and COVID is rampant such as in NCR, Region 4A, Region 3, Region 7 and CAR. If possible. Only in hospitals with low uptake ),” he added.
Duque said that he received reports that some facilities have few uptake of COVID-19 vaccines, meaning only few healthcare workers got themselves vaccinated.
“Nakatanggap ako ng report na (may facilities na) mababa ang uptake, edi sayang naman baka abutan ng expiration katulad ng AstraZeneca na tatlong buwan lang ang expiry period hanggang May 31 lang (I received a report that some facilities have low uptake of vaccines. We don’t want these vaccines to be unused and reach their expiration date. Like for AstraZeneca, it has an expiry period of only three months, until May 31),” he said.
“Bakit hindi natin hiramin muna at dalhin dito sa may mga matitinding pangangailangan? Ginagawa naman talaga yan, matagal na naming ginagawa yan (Why don't we borrow it first and bring it here to those in dire need? We are really doing that, we have been doing that for a long time),” he added.
“Ginagawa talaga yan (That is being done as) part of management intervention,” he furthered.