A total of 3,000 Sputnik V COVID-19 vaccine doses arrived at the Sta. Ana Hospital in Manila on Monday (May 3).
The vaccines were part of the initial batch of 15,000 doses of Sputnik V developed by the Russian Gamaleya Institute which were delivered to the country on Saturday (May 1).
The vaccines are being stored at the Manila COVID-19 Vaccine Storage Facility. The Sputnik V vaccine should be stored in a dark place and in temperatures not over -18 degrees.
Manila Mayor Francisco "Isko Moreno" Domagoso, who was present during the vaccine's arrival, said the capital city can begin vaccinating medical frontliners aged 18 above using Sputnik V as soon as they get the go signal from the Department of Health (DOH).
Sta. Ana Hospital and Ospital ng Maynila Medical Center will serve as the vaccination sites for the health workers.
Since a number of the city's medical frontliners have already been inoculated with vaccines developed by Chinese biopharmaceutical company Sinovac and British-Swedish bio-pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca, the city can begin vaccinating senior citizens and people with comorbidities in a few days, Domagoso said.
Additional vaccination sites are being readied for the A2 and A3 priority groups.
Domagoso is unfazed by the recent banning of the Russian vaccine by Brazil because it supposedly carries a live cold virus.
"They (Brazil) have their own FDA (Food and Drug Administration), we have our own FDA… They are good in their respective fields," Domagoso said. "We must continue to believe in our systems."
As of Sunday evening, the Manila city government has vaccinated at least 79,537 health workers, senior citizens, and people with comorbidities.
More than 327,000 people have also pre-registered for vaccination at manilacovid19vaccine.ph.