Speaker Lord Allan Velasco on Monday, Dec. 13 is prepared to push for amendments to Republic Act 11525 or the COVID-19 Vaccination Program Act in order to grant the private sector bigger role in sustaining the momentum of government’s inoculation program.

At the same time, Velasco also urged the Departmentof Health and the National Task Force Against COVID-19 (NTF) to reveal to the public all findings in connection with the period of efficacy of vaccines in protecting people from COVID-19 infection.

“They should inform the public how long a certain vaccine brand lasts so that people would know when they get a booster or get inoculated again,” Velasco said.

Velasco, principal author of RA 11525 in the House of Representatives, said he was open to amending the law to allow private companies to directly purchase vaccines for their workers and their dependents.

The House leader has joined the call for the national government to pursue the possibility of granting the private sector a larger role in the vaccination program for the 2019 coronavirus disease (COVID-19) as he noted that there is an urgent need to sustain the successes being achieved in protecting Filipinos from COVID-19 infection.

Velasco said government must now start reviewing and revisiing the policy on COVID-19 vaccine procurement by allowing the private sector to purchase directly from manufacturers, stressing that the move will help sustain the momentum of the successful vaccination program.

“Since there is now ample supply of safe and effective COVID-19 vaccines globally, it is time that the national government consider allowing the private sector to deal directly with manufacturers to ensure a more sustainable and dependable supply of life-saving vaccines for Filipinos,” Velasco said.

Under Republic Act 11525 or the COVID-19 Vaccination Program Act of 2021, private companies and local government units (LGUs) are authorized to procure vaccines which have been given emergency use authorization through a tripartite agreement with manufacturers and the national government, represented by the Department of Health (DOH) and the National Task Force Against COVID-19 (NTF).

Velasco explained that granting the private sector the authority to directly purchase COVID-19 shots will “relieve pressure on government resources considering that vaccine procurement and administration entails a lot of logistical challenges.” “By granting the private sector greater participation in the vaccination campaign, the government can focus its resources on the inoculation of frontliners, uniformed personnel and vulnerable sectors,” Velasco pointed out.

“The amount the government will save can be channeled to efforts to help economic recovery post-pandemic,” he added.

Given the high-level of efficiency associated with the private sector, Velasco said its greater involvement in COVID-19 vaccination would enhance government efforts to ensure rapid and efficient rollout of available vaccines.