A total of 216,794 individuals -- most of them medical frontliners -- have already been inoculated against the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) as of 11 a.m. Tuesday, March 16.

Secretary Carlito Galvez Jr., vaccine czar and chief implementer of the National Task Force (NTF) Against COVID-19, said the vaccinations were being conducted at 929 vaccination sites across the 17 regions of the country.
"We want to emphasize that the vaccine rollout that we are conducting now is for our medical frontliners who are part of the A1 priority of the DOH. We have established a system and a schedule and we will follow this," Galvez noted.
He made the statement after Duterte ordered Health Secretary Francisco Duque III Monday night to begin the vaccination of Filipinos belonging to the "poorest of the poor." Galvez said that the vaccination of the entire 1.7 million healthcare workers may be finished by April.
After this, the inoculation of other sectors in the priority list of the government will commence which include senior citizens, persons with comorbidity, frontliners in essential services, and indigent population among others.
He said the vaccination of the general population may begin in the second quarter, specifically by May, when the bulk of the vaccines procured by the government are delivered.