Public urged to report groups selling COVID-19 ‘vaccines’

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Friday urged the public to report health facilities and groups selling purported vaccines against COVID-19.

FDA director general Eric Domingo said there was still no registered vaccine against the severe respiratory disease and any vaccine that would be subjected to a clinical trial in the country could not be sold to the public.

“We have to remember that even though a product is undergoing clinical trials in the Philippines or abroad, and it’s not a registered product, they cannot be promoted in the market as safe and effective, and, definitely, they cannot be sold. What can be sold to and used by the public are those registered and approved by FDA,” Domingo said.

“If you see anyone advertising or selling [purported vaccines], please report them directly to us so that we can have those facilities inspected and checked because it’s illegal to sell COVID-19 vaccines,” he added.

Domingo issued the reminder following reports of Chinese advertisements marketing clinical trial vaccines.

Domingo said it would be ideal that trials of candidate COVID-19 vaccines would start as soon as possible given the steady decline in the number of new infections.

On Friday, the Department of Health logged an additional 2,006 cases, bringing the overall number of cases to 378,933. Batangas reported the biggest number of new cases at 124, followed by Cavite (121), Quezon City (105), Rizal (89) and Bulacan (81).

There are now a total 330,457 COVID-19 survivors with the recovery of 636 more patients. The death toll, however, rose to 7,185 as 38 patients succumbed to the severe respiratory disease.

The recoveries and deaths left the country with 41,291 active cases, of which 83.3 percent are mild, 11.1 percent asymptomatic, 2 percent severe and 3.6 percent critical.

Since the start of the month, there were only three instances when daily new infections went past 3,000. These were on Oct. 4, 12 and 16. Compared to last month, overall new cases have dropped by 25 percent from 92,495 to 68,730.