The presence of the Delta variant of the coronavirus in the Philippines should not hinder the government in achieving its target of vaccinating 70 percent of the country's population by the end of this year, a health expert said on Tuesday, July 20.

The Delta variant is not yet considered a "major factor" to change the vaccination target, said infectious disease expert Dr. Rontgene Solante.

"Sa ngayon, hindi pa ito major factor para ibahin natin ang target natin na 70 percent. So ganoon pa rin ang magiging target now (Right now, it's not a major factor for us to change our target of (vaccinating) 70 percent. We are sticking to our target)," said Solante during a televised press briefing.

"Hopefully by the end of the year, we can vaccinate 70 percent of the total population, especially those at risk population," he added.

Solante urged the public to strictly adhere to the minimum public health standards, noting that a person carrying the Delta variant can transmit this virus to at least six other people in “one interaction."

"Paigtingin pa rin talaga natin iyong minimum health safety protocol, iyong pagsusuot ng mask, pagsusuot ng face shield at saka iyong physical distancing (Let's really intensify the implementation of minimum health safety protocol-- wearing a mask, wearing a face shield and also physical distancing)," said Solante.

"For me, this is the most important, especially po those na wala pang mga bakuna and even for those na may mga bakuna na. Kailangan pa rin natin itong higpitan, mas doble or triple higpitan natin (for those who don't have vaccines yet and even for those who were already vaccinated. We still need to intensify its implementation, double or triple it)," he added.

Solante said that the health protocols serve as a "barrier" in order to "stop transmitting the infection."