The National Task Force (NTF) Against the Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) may have fallen short of its target in fully vaccinating 54 million Filipinos by the end of 2021 but this does not deter them to set new goals and protect as many lives as possible this 2022.
Amid the threat of the more transmissible Omicron variant, vaccine czar and NTF chief implementer Carlito Galvez Jr. said the government is on track to finishing the 2021 vaccination goal in the first or second week of the new year by setting new targets and pursuing the old ones.
On Dec. 31, the National Vaccination Operations Center (NVOC) said around 49 million individuals were fully vaccinated against COVID-19 which was short by five million to hit the 54 million goal of the NTF.
“Our country is now moving closer towards achieving its goal of fully vaccinating 54 million Filipinos within this year, which is our target population, and fully inoculating 77 million of our countrymen before the national elections this year,” Galvez said.
“But we must keep in mind that we are not out of the woods yet. COVID-19 cases are rising once again. We need to vaccinate as quickly as we can and use the Janssen vaccines which we now have in abundant supply,” he added.
Among the new targets set by the NTF include the planned rollout of the vaccination of individuals aged below 12 years old in the first quarter of 2022.
Just last Dec. 23, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced that it already approved the emergency use authorization (EUA) of Pfizer vaccine for children aged five to 11.
“We have to start the vaccination of children aged five to 11,” Galvez said. Around 13.5 million individuals under this age bracket are targeted to be inoculated against the COVID-19.
The vaccine czar also reiterated his proposal to make COVID-19 vaccination mandatory.
“There is a need to prescribe vaccine mandates to reduce the risk coming from unvaccinated individuals,” he said.
However, this matter has been the subject of debate as select sectors insist it should be a basic right of individuals to choose what’s best for their own bodies.
Meanwhile, among the previous targets that Galvez said should be pursued was the inoculation and booster administration of unvaccinated senior citizens and immunocompromised individuals.
“Furthermore, we also need to continuously upgrade our COVID-19 health care facilities throughout the country by adding more COVID-19 beds, oxygen tanks, and COVID-19 medicines. As early as now, we have to prepare for future surges,” Galvez noted.
So far, a total of 49,797,374 individuals have been fully vaccinated while 57,147,099 have received their first dose. A total of 1,812,884 individuals have also gotten their booster shots.