An official of the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) urged the local government units (LGUs) on Tuesday, June 8 to prioritize individuals aged 40 to 59 years old under the A4 category in their coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) vaccination program.
The A4 category under the national government’s COVID-19 vaccination program covers people in the labor force.
DILG Undersecretary and spokesperson Jonathan Malaya in a GMA News report explained that the LGUs can proceed with the COVID-19 jabs with the other age group under the A4 category when the COVID-19 supplies stabilize.
“Yes we agree. For prioritization in the A4 category while the supply situation stabilizes. But this is without prejudice to the simultaneous vaccination of the A1 to A3,” Malaya said.
“It’s just because COVID-19 vaccine supply is limited but once the supply stabilizes, we will proceed with the other A4 ages,” he added.
Malaya’s stand is similar to that of Department of Health (DOH) Secretary Francisco Duque III who made the same proposal during a briefing with President Duterte on June 7.
Duque wants the LGUs to first inoculate individuals aged 40 to 59 years old under the A4 category before vaccinating those aged 18 to 39 years old in the same bracket.
On June 7, the government officially began its vaccination of those under the A4 category covering an estimated around 35 million people.
In the same GMA News report, it was disclosed that the vaccination rollout for the A4 category was divided into two phases, initially the inoculation of workers in Metro Manila, Cavite, Bulacan, Rizal, Laguna, Pampanga, Metro Cebu and Metro Davao (NCR+8) and second for the labor force outside the NCR+8.