Iloilo 1st District Rep. Janette Garin on Monday, Sept. 12, called as “premature” the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases’ recommendation to relax the country’s face mask protocol because of the low booster rate.

The lawmaker said the recommendation could spike cases anew and would “send a mixed signal” to a population that hasn’t fully adhered to having their Covid-19 vaccine booster shots yet.

“If we make wearing of face mask optional this would send a mixed signal, the public would feel that there’s no pandemic anymore and will be more confident not to get booster shots,” she added, stressing that there is no additional benefits for the optional mask policy since Filipinos and the economy have slowly returned back to normal.

Garin, a medical doctor by profession and an expert trained in Advanced Vaccinology, said the risks that would be taken with the IATF recommendation are high.

“Ang tanong diyan (The question there is)—have we pre-positioned medicines for Covid? Kapag magkasakit ka libre ba ang mga gamot (If you get sick, is the medicine free)? These are questions that should be answered before po magkaroon ng pinal na desisyon tungkol sa (we can make a final decision about the) mask policy.”

Garin explained that the optional mask policy can be done in Singapore and Vietnam because their booster population has reached 78 percent.

And although the United States has low booster rate as of the moment, the country’s health care system is well-organized as they have ample hospital beds and free medicines for its Covid-19-positive patients.

READ: IATF recommends optional wearing of face mask outdoors—DOH

To solve the Philippines’ low booster rate, which is currently at 21.76 percent, the lawmaker proposed to change the definition of a fully vaccinated person from someone who received two primary Covid-19 vaccine doses to someone who has completed the primary series of the vaccine and also received a first booster shot.

“Dapat ang gawin ng ating gobyerno ay palitan at gawin na (What our government should do is change and make someone) considered fully vaccinated ka lang sa (against) Covid kung mayroon kang 3 bakuna. Huwag tayong matakot sabihin na nawala ang ating (if you have three doses. Let’s not be afraid to say we lost our) herd immunity nang pumasok ang (when the) Omicron variant kaya hindi sapat ang protekson kung walang ikatlong bakuna (entered so the protection is not enough if there is no third dose),” Garin said.

Herd immunity happens when the virus can’t spread in a community because it keeps encountering people who are protected against the virus.

The lawmaker lamented that the messaging about the booster shot isn’t clear as well since the public listened when the government mandated them to receive the primary series of the Covid-19 vaccine as almost 92 percent or 72 million Filipinos have complied with it.

The Department of Health (DOH) had said that one of the reasons for the non-acceptance of boosters is that nine out of 10 Filipinos are overconfident on the protection given by the primary series.

“Nasaan ba ang problema (Where does the problem lie)? I believe it is in the messaging because we keep on insisting na (that you are already) fully vaccinated ka na sa dalawang dose (with two doses),” Garin said.

READ: Vaccine expert highlights importance of booster jabs anew

“Hindi tayo nagiging (We are not being) transparent. Hindi tayo nagiging buo sa desisyon na ang katotohanan, nung pumasok ‘yung (We are not being firm in our decision that the truth is, when the) Delta at dumagdag pa ‘yung (entered and add to that the) Omicron variant at (and) sub variant, ang isang (a) fully vaccinated person ay iba na ang naging depinisyon (has a different definition),” she added.

She explained that the primary series of vaccine means a person is “under vaccinated” because the protection is “inadequate.”

The first and second booster shots are needed for a person to be fully protected from Covid-19.

To encourage the public to have their third vaccine, Garin also proposed to incorporate the financial assistance program of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) with the DOH booster program. These two programs will make it easier to encourage the public to get their booster shot by providing for their logistical expenses.