The Philippine College of Physicians (PCP) on Sunday, April 24, expressed support for the second booster shot program of the Department of Health (DOH), noting such is very beneficial to senior citizens and immunocompromised who are more vulnerable to contracting severe Covid-19.
The start of the rollout of the second booster shot for immunocompromised is on Monday, April 25, according to the health department.
Dr. Maricar Limpin, the president of PCP, said the more of the health department to give second booster shot to those vulnerable is right.
“The second booster shot will be more beneficial to those more vulnerable to getting infected with severe Covid-19---the immune-compromised and the elderlies,” she said in Filipino during an interview with DZBB.
She stressed the pressing need to boost the immunity of the vulnerable sectors, noting that scientific evidence showed that the efficacy of the Covid-19 vaccine wanes over time.
Limpin likened the Covid-19 vaccine to flu shot and pneumonia vaccine that needs to be updated.
“ailangan ng updated na vaccination dahil ang inaasahan na bababa ang proteksyon ng bakuna (Vaccination must be updated as we are expecting its effectiveness wanes),” she explained.
For the second booster shot rollout on April 25, the DOH said vaccine brands that will be used are AstraZeneca, Moderna, Pfizer, Sinopharm, and Sinovac.
Health Secretary Francisco T. Duque III, meanwhile, defined immunocompromised individuals as those diagnosed with HIV/AIDS, cancer patients, transplant patients, and individuals taking immunosuppressive medicines, among others.