The government has appealed to senior citizens to refrain from going out of their houses and continue following other health and safety protocols even after receiving their coronavirus vaccines.

Presidential spokesman Harry Roque assured the seniors that the government will study the proposal on whether to ease the movement restrictions once all seniors have been fully vaccinated. But for now, the Palace official asked seniors to stay in their homes to avoid getting infected.

"Ipinagbawal lang po natin ang presensiya ng mga seniors sa mga malls, kasi sila po iyong pinaka-susceptible na mamatay dahil sa COVID-19. Tried and tested na po iyan. Now ang suhestiyon naman po kapag fully vaccinated na, well, hintayin po muna natin na talagang tuluyang ma-vaccinate na ang lahat ng ating mga seniors at pag-aaralan naman po natin kung pupuwede na (We have prohibited the presence of seniors in malls because they are the most susceptible to death due to COVID-19. That's tried and tested. Now on the suggestion to allow when fully vaccinated, well, let's wait until all seniors are vaccinated and we will study if it will be allowed)," Roque said over government television Friday, May 21.

In asking seniors to stay home, Roque explained that vaccination offered no guarantee of complete protection against the coronavirus.

"Ang problema po kasi, ang vaccination, hindi po iyan 100 percent guarantee (The problem with vaccination is it is not 100 percent guarantee). Guarantee lang po iyan na hindi maospital o hindi mamamatay dahil sa COVID-19 (It only guarantees that one will not be hospitalized or die due to COVID-19)," he said.

"Pero pagdating po kasi sa seniors, hindi natin masasabi dahil karamihan ng seniors mayroon ding comorbidities. So kinakailangan pag-ingatan pa rin po. Sa ngayon po, let us become homeliners, mga seniors (But when it comes to seniors, we cannot say because most seniors have comorbidities so we must be careful. So for now, let us become homeliners, our seniors)," he said.

Lawyer Romulo Macalintal recently appealed to the government's pandemic task force to ease the quarantine restrictions on senior citizens who have been vaccinated against the coronavirus. Macalintal reportedly wrote a letter to the task force suggesting that seniors could be required to present their vaccination cards when they go to restaurants and attend religious gatherings.

Under the government's quarantine rules, any person below 18 years and over 65 years old are required to remain in their residences at all times except for obtaining essential goods and services and for going to work.

Senior citizens are among the people given priority in the government's vaccination program. As of May 18, more than 3.2 million doses of coronavirus vaccines mostly to health workers, seniors, and those with comorbidities.