Presidential Adviser for Entrepreneurship and Go Negosyo founder Joey Concepcion has backed OCTA Research's suggestion of giving booster shots to Filipinos sooner in order to protect them against the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), especially the new Omicron variant.
This, as Concepcion insisted Thursday, Dec. 16 that the reported entry of the Omicron variant in the Philippines shouldn't cause panic among his countrymen.
“We have the tools and we have the experience that foresight, a proactive stance, and cooperation are the winning formula in overcoming COVID-19,” he said in a statement.
Concepcion said that foresight will again play a crucial role in how the country will handle Omicron. “When we secured vaccines back in November 2020 and when we locked down in August 2021, these were in anticipation of what would happen in the coming months."
He said that a shorter interval between the second dose of the COVID-19 vaccine and the booster shot may be necessary. This, as data from South Africa, where the Omicron variant was first reported, showed that immunity wanes substantially within months of the second dose.
Concepcion and OCTA Research have suggested the administering of booster shots in as short as four months after the second dose, instead of the customary six months. They also reckoned that the government must prepare to give booster shots to all Filipinos by the first or second quarter of 2022 to prevent a massive surge.
“We have the vaccines, and it will be those vaccines that will create that wall of protection,” said Concepcion, who led Go Negosyo’s townhall meeting, “VAX to the MAX: Preventing the Surge ' last Dec. 15. OCTA Research fellow Fr. Nic Austriaco was among the experts who attended the event.
Based on several sources tracking the arrival of vaccines in the country, by the end of the year the Philippines will have received close to 200 million vaccine doses, enough to vaccinate every eligible Filipino in the country.
Experts who attended the townhall meeting were unanimous in emphasizing the importance of vaccination. “When Omicron arrives, it will find every unvaccinated Filipino,” said Austriaco.
The Go Negosyo initiative VAX to the MAX aims to monitor vaccination rates across the country via a dashboard that identifies local government units (LGUs) with fulfilled vaccinations targets and LGUs that need to step up their efforts.
Concepcion explained that the use of the dashboard will result in more focused vaccination drives, which would in turn help delay the spread of Omicron and help protect Filipinos in the countryside, many of whom have yet to be vaccinated.
Moreover, Concepcion stressed the value of cooperation. “The private sector has pledged to uphold public health standards and safe places in their establishments, and to keep watch and enforce these among their members. Clearly, we need the private sector, the national government, the local governments and the communities working together to solve this problem."
“These days we are seeing very low numbers in new COVID-19 cases in the Philippines. We would like to preserve that,” he said, adding that another surge and lockdown will negatively affect the country’s economy.
“What Omicron teaches us is that variants will continue to be a fact of life with COVID, and we need to always be prepared for it,” he said.