Pasig City Mayor Vico Sotto said on Monday, Sept. 19, that the city government has “moved away from mega sites towards caravan vaccinations (CaraVacc) in schools and barangays to make it easier for those who have not yet been vaccinated” to protect themselves and their families against Covid-19.
Launched last Aug. 12, the Covid-19 vaccination caravan or the “CaraVacc to the Community” program aimed to boost the city’s vaccination rate by setting up sites in more convenient areas that are near residences, schools, or places of work.
It mostly caters to individuals who live in areas far from the city’s regular vaccination sites.
The Pasig City Covid-19 Vaccination Team (PCCVT) said 7,090 individuals have been vaccinated in the past 22 days of the CaraVacc rollout.
Sotto said around 14,688 students have been vaccinated in their “CaraVacc to School” sites since the opening of classes last Aug. 22.
The PCCVT admitted that it still encounters individuals who refuse or are hesitant to take the Covid-19 vaccines.
“We bring the vaccination against Covid-19 down to the community level to make the vaccination closer to the people,” it said.
The local government also maintains its regular sites for Covid-19 vaccinations.
Weekly updates on schedules, number of slots, and availability of vaccine brands per vaccination site are posted every Monday on the social media accounts of the Pasig City Public Information Office (PIO).
SM City East Ortigas and Tiendesitas Malls continue to serve the people five days a week.
The Pasig City General Hospital (PCGH) remains open on Fridays to vaccinate individuals with comorbidities.
More barangay health centers have also been authorized as vaccination sites particularly in Bambang, Pinagbuhatan, Sagad, and Sumilang.
“We made the vaccination sites open to walk-ins so that people can freely go to vaccination sites without needing to register first, as long as they have their PasigPass QR code with them,” said the PCCVT.
“We post the weekly vaccination schedule open to walk-ins to encourage people to be vaccinated,” it added.
Covid vaccines administered
According to the latest data of the PCCVT provided to Manila Bulletin on Tuesday, Sept. 20, the local government has administered a total of 1,581,116 doses as of Sept. 16.
The primary dose was given to 652,906 individuals, while 626,922 received their second primary dose. 247,897 people got their first booster jabs, and 53,391 the second booster shot.
Around 70 percent have gotten their booster shots equivalent to 592,416 out of a total of 828,114, according to the 2022 population data set by the Department of Health (DOH).
Around 47.59 received their first booster shot while roughly 30 percent got their second booster shot.
The PCCVT said these statistics are “rough estimates” since it “has no data on the total population of who can be vaccinated now among the A1, A2, A3, and 50-59 categories.”
The data is computed based on the “booster vaccines administered versus the population set by the DOH.”
“It’s actually quite difficult to attribute what part of these numbers are Pasig residents since all NCR LGUs are now vaccinating whether or not an individual is their resident,” said the PCCVT.
Even with rough estimates, the team said their booster numbers are “less than expected,” since policies in outdoor mobility have become lax “regardless of the vaccination status of individuals.”
According to the City Health Department (CHD) data, as of Tuesday, Sept. 20, the city has recorded 402 active cases, 87,224 confirmed cases, 85,185 recoveries, and 1,637 deaths.