The government will try its best to assure the delivery of government-procured coronavirus vaccines within May this year to commence the vaccination rollout for the general public.
National Task Force Against Covid-19 chief implementer and vaccine czar Carlito Galvez Jr. said yesterday they are also targeting to complete the inoculation of healthcare workers nationwide once 2.3 million more doses of the Covid-19 vaccine arrive this month or early April.
“We are trying to stockpile about 8 million [doses of Covid-19 vaccine] by May,” Galvez said during a virtual press briefing.
By the second week of April, an additional four million doses may be delivered.
“At least we could vaccinate one million a week,” he said. “Indigent Filipinos will be prioritized in the massive inoculation campaign.”
Meanwhile, complacency, failure to adhere to health protocols and the emergence of new variants contributed to the sudden surge of Covid-19 cases.
Galvez yesterday said the arrival of vaccines also contributed to the public’s relaxed attitude.
“When the people found out that the vaccines are arriving, we noticed that the people have relaxed,” he said.
Galvez reminded the public to continue adhering to the government’s health and safety protocols.
He said people should “make it an obligation” to wear masks and face shields as well as practicing social distancing at all times.
Getting Covid-19 vaccine shots will give additional protection, Galvez reiterated, but there is still the need to observe the minimum health standards.
“We cannot equate the rise of Covid-19 cases to the economic opening as we see there could be more lapses on the observation of the minimum health standards, that people became complacent following the arrival of the vaccines,” Galvez said.
He also cited the exposure of some Filipinos from abroad to the new variants as another factor in the increasing cases.
With 631,320 total infections as of yesterday, there are still 57,736 active cases. However, 96.6 percent are mild or asymptomatic cases, according to the Department of Health.*PNA
