End of 2021 to early 2022 ‘realistic’ rollout for COVID vaccination — Galvez

Presidential Peace adviser and concurrent National Task Force COVID-19 Response Chief Implementor Carlito Galvez Jr. FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines — The “realistic” scenario of when the Philippines can roll out its COVID-19 vaccination program is from end of 2021 to early 2022, vaccine czar and pandemic response chief implementer Carlito Galvez Jr. said Wednesday.

“Ang ating best case scenario ay second quarter or middle of the year of 2021,” Galvez said in a televised briefing when asked for the government’s target date for mass vaccination.

While there are several clinical trials for COVID-19 vaccines to be held in the country starting December, Galvez said it will take a while or until the first quarter of 2021 to find out its results.

“So ang best case scenario is second quarter, ang worst case scenario o ang tinatawag nating realistic scenario ay end of the year or early 2022,” he explained.

(The best case scenario is the second quarter while the worst case scenario or the realistic scenario is at the end of the year or early 2022.)

The Philippines is targeting to vaccinate 60 million Filipinos to achieve herd immunity wherein enough people in a specific area are protected against infectious disease.

President Rodrigo Duterte said sectors to be prioritized for the COVID-19 vaccines are indigent citizens, medical frontliners, the military and police.

Once the expected COVID-19 vaccine is developed, Galvez earlier said the government will roll out the distribution based on geography or which areas have high cases of COVID-19, then the priority sectors identified by the President.

So far, pharmaceutical firms Pfizer, Moderna and AstraZeneca announced that the COVID-19 vaccines they are developing have shown encouraging results.

JPV