Parañaque City Mayor Edwin Olivarez assured that local government units (LGUs) in Metro Manila are prepared to store the additional deliveries of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) vaccines which are expected in May and June to achieve herd immunity.
"Nakaready na po ang lahat ng ating LGUs mula po noong nagumpisa po yung atin pong rollout nitong nakaraang March (LGUs have been ready since the start of the COVID-19 vaccine rollout in March)," Olivarez, who is also chairman of the Metro Manila Council (MMC) said in an interview with DZBB.
"Nai-ayos naman po ng bawat LGU sa Metro Manila yung atin pong mga rollout (Every LGU in Metro Manila so far has handled the vaccine rollout ver well)," he added.
Olivarez said that in Parañaque City, Zuellig Pharmaceutical-Philippines has been made in charge of the warehousing and storage of the COVID-19 vaccines in the city.
The mayor had earlier said that Zuellig’s storage has a capability of up to 70 degrees centigrade. From the airport, the vaccines will be brought to the Zuellig storage and to the vaccination centers in the city.
Recently, 500,000 doses of Sinovac’s CoronaVac vaccines were allocated to the National Capital Region-plus (NCR-plus), the second tranche of the 1.5 million doses scheduled for delivery this month by the China-based manufacturer.
Vaccine Czar Secretary Carlito Galvez, Jr. said that 100,000 doses were allocated for Metro Manila, while the rest of the supply will be deployed in other areas that are experiencing a surge in COVID-19 cases.
He said that the government aims to achieve herd immunity in areas with a high attack rate, specifically in Metro Manila by October or November.
The country is also expecting an initial 15,000 Sputnik V doses to arrive on April 28. An additional 480,000 doses is also expected along with 500,000 doses of Sinovac’s CoronaVac vaccines on April 29. By the end of the month, 195,000 Pfizer vaccine doses are also scheduled to arrive.
In May, two million Sinovac doses are expected to dbe delivered as well as 1 to 2 million Sputnik V doses and 194,000 Moderna doses.
In June, 4.5 million Sinovac doses are expected as well as 2 million Sputnik V shots and 1.3 million AstraZeneca doses.