The Department of Health (DOH) has urged local government units (LGUs) to speed up their coronavirus disease (COVID-19) vaccination program rollout.
"We would want them to level up their immunization program before they get their additional allocation," Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said in a virtual forum Monday, May 31.
She added that the vaccine cluster is already looking at the performances of LGUs before giving them additional allocation.
"This is to incentivize the LGUs for them to perform better," said Vergeire.
As to the start of the inoculation of those covered by the A4 priority group, or frontline personnel in essential sectors, she said, they will start the vaccination once they have the guidelines and the supply is already stable.
Vergeire said the vaccine cluster is already drafting the guidelines.
Meanwhile, the DOH is still awaiting World Health Organization's confirmation on the so-called Vietnam variant.
"The WHO said over the weekend that they have not received full details of this apparent variant in Vietnam. They said they will wait first for the details before they issue guidance to member countries of WHO," said Vergeire.
She said currently, the country's health authorities "do not have sufficient evidence" on the supposed new variant.
"We don't need to panic because of this news. Let us just make sure that we are protected from these variants," said Vergeire.