President Duterte has approved the recommendation to utilize all 525,600 vials of AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccines as first dose for healthcare workers amid the fast-rising number of cases of infections in the country.
(ALFRED FRIAS / PRESIDENTIAL PHOTO)
Presidential Spokesman Harry Roque made the announcement days after Health Secretary Francisco Duque III and Vaccine Czar Carlito Galvez Jr. made the recommendation to protect medical frontliners from the risk of coronavirus disease (COVID-19).
In his Friday presser, Roque said Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea has issued a memorandum on the use of all available AstraZeneca shots in the country.
"Please be informed that the President has approved the request to utilize all on-hand COVAX-donated AstraZeneca doses as first-dose vaccination in order to protect a larger number of frontline healthcare workers in areas witnessing increased transmission," he said.
The Philippines has received a total of 525,600 AstraZeneca shots from the COVAX Facility, a mechanism led by the World Health Organization (WHO), this month.
During their televised meeting on Monday, Duque and Galvez recommended to President Duterte to allow the use of all AstraZeneca vaccines as first-dose shots for healthcare workers. The President, however, was worried that the second dose might not arrive on time.
Duque, in response, assured the President that the interval between the two doses of AstraZeneca vaccines was 12 weeks. He also stressed the need to use the vaccines because of their relatively short shelf life of three months.
Galvez likewise told the President that the 979,200 vials of AstraZeneca from the COVAX Facility were expected to arrive by early next month.
WHO Representative to the Philippines Dr.Rabindra Abeyasinghe had advised the Philippine government to distribute all on-hand AstraZeneca vaccines first to avoid a delay in future shipments.
Abeyasinghe, according to Duque, has assured the Philippine government that the next batch of AstraZeneca vaccines will be delivered on time.