BY GILBERT P. BAYORAN
The provincial government of Negros Occidental is still waiting for the “green light” from the national Inter-Agency Task Force to start the inoculation of economic frontliners, or those in the A4 category, Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson said yesterday.
Lacson said they have been receiving requests for the vaccination of economic frontliners in Negros Occidental. Unfortunately, the province is still not allowed to do that, he added.
“If we can only open vaccination to A4 and A5 categories, then the target of 70 percent could be reached at a faster pace, Lacson also said.
The Provincial Health Office reported yesterday that more than 200,000 individuals in Negros Occidental have already been vaccinated, as of July 6.
Of the number, 168,797 got their first dose, while 31,897 received their second dose, a PHO report said.
But Lacson admitted that they were not able to hit their vaccination targets for A1 to A3 categories, as they are still dependent on the availability of vaccines.
“We have not received the required vaccines for these sectors,” he said.
Negros Occidental received Tuesday 10,000 doses of Sinovac vaccine, on top of the more than 34,000 doses it received last week from the national government.
The provincial government is also expecting to receive on July 15 the first batch of 3,500 vials out of the 100,000 doses of AstraZeneca vaccine it had purchased.
Provincial Administrator Rayfrando Diaz said that the rollout of Sinovac vaccines to various local government units will resume today, following the vaccination of 500 individuals yesterday at the Negros Residences in Bacolod City.*
