The Department of Health (DOH) said that children are not yet eligible to participate in the government’s coronavirus disease (COVID-19) vaccination program as local health experts are still studying the safety of vaccines for this particular group of the population.

“As to the vaccination of children, even with comorbidities, wala pa hong binibigay na rekomendasyon ang ating mga eksperto ukol dito (our experts have not yet given any recommendations on this),” said DOH Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire on Friday, August 6.

“Gusto natin masiguro yung safety ng mga bakunang ito para sa ating mga kabataan. Kaya kailangan pa natin ng additional evidence for that (We want to ensure the safety of these vaccines for the youth. So, we still need additional evidence for that),” she added.

Vergeire also emphasized that the vaccination of individuals aged 17 and below is also “still not recommended because studies have shown that the pediatric population are less likely to suffer (a) severe form of COVID-19. “

She noted that the vaccines should first be allocated to the most vulnerable groups.

“Sa panahon ng Delta variant, kailangan natin tutukan yung mga highly vulnerable dito sa ating bansa (Amid the threat of Delta variant, we need to focus on the highly vulnerable population in our country),” said Vergeire.

“Yung mga supplies natin ngayon, kailangan idirekta muna natin doon sa mga taong matatanda (A2) at yung ating mga A3 at A1 (The supplies we have now, we need to direct it first to the elderly (A2) and our A3 and A1 priority groups),” she added.

Vaccine brand mixing, booster shots

Local health experts are still studying the possible administration of COVID-19 vaccine booster shots and the mixing of vaccine brands.

“The DOH and the Department of Science and Technology are still conducting studies and looking for foreign literature to support the safety and effectiveness of mixing vaccine brands and using booster doses,” said Vergeire.

“This is also an equity issue. It is not equitable to give third or fourth doses to people when we have yet to give one or two doses for more than half of our population,” she added.