The government is eyeing to start providing second Covid-19 vaccine booster shots for some sectors this week, an official of the Department of Health (DOH) said on Sunday, April 17.

DOH Undersecretary Myrna Cabotaje said they are still waiting for the final recommendation of the Health Technology Assessment Council (HTAC) before the said measure can commence.

"Sana Apr 20 but depends on the submission of the HTAC recommendations," Cabotaje, who is also the head of the National Vaccination Operations Center (NVOC), said in a text message to Manila Bulletin.

The HTAC recommendation will be included in the guidelines set for the provision of the second booster shot, said Cabotaje.

"Yung (The) second booster will start after the Health Technology Assessment Council have given their recommendations. We will incorporate these in our NVOC guidelines together with the FDA (Food and Drug Administration) EUA (emergency use authorization) provisions," she said.

On April 13, the DOH said that the FDA has already approved the roll out of the second booster shot for "senior citizens 60 years old and above, the immunocompromised, and frontline healthcare workers."

"This second booster dose shall be given at least four months after the first booster. For moderately and severely immunocompromised patients, the second booster could be given earlier subject to the attending physician's assessment," the DOH then said in a statement.

Booster for kids

In a related development, the proposal to administer booster shots for children is still under review, said Cabotaje.

"Yung booster for 12 to 17 pa lang ang pinag-uusapan (We are discussing booster shots for those aged 12 to 17 so far). No policy yet," she said.

To recall, DOH Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire last April 8 said that they already sent a request to the FDA to amend the EUA of Covid-19 vaccines in order to provide booster shots for children aged 12 to 17.