Local gov’ts scramble to be ready for mass vaccination

MANILA, Philippines — From drawing up a master list of vaccine recipients to setting up vaccination hubs and medical waste facilities, local governments are scrambling to lay the groundwork for the anticipated mass inoculation against COVID-19.

In Aklan province, some 400 kilometers from Metro Manila, provincial health officer Leslie Ann Luces said only about four in a group of 400 to 500 medical workers were willing to get the shot.

“We’re given very little time to accomplish this. We’re at a crunch time,” Luces said.

National government officials acknowledged the big role local governments must play in the vaccination, which Bataan Gov. Albert Garcia said was “a lot to take in,” considering a high number of Filipinos who are hesitant to get vaccinated.

Crucial issue

Garcia said the 2018 Dengvaxia scare was a “crucial issue” in trying to convince people to get the COVID-19 vaccines.

Governors and local health executives raised logistical concerns—from storing to transporting the vaccines across islands—in recent forums on supply chain management, one was organized by the Zuellig Family Foundaton and the other by the Union of Local Authorities of the Philippines (Ulap).

Agusan del Sur Gov. Santiago Cane Jr. said it was “almost impossible” for most local governments to provide ultralow-temperature freezers that some vaccine brands require.

Vaccine purchase

Sarangani Gov. Steve Solon questioned the need for local governments to procure vaccines on their own, when the national government was willing to provide them anyway.

“It has not come into my mind that our province will be procuring (vaccines). If we were to buy and the national government was also to buy, (some) vaccines might just end up stale,” said Cane, who would rather allocate local funds for other expenses related to the vaccination program.

In its January advisories, the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) said component cities and municipalities with available funds might pool their vaccine orders through the governors, who in turn would coordinate with the national task force.

But local governments, “are also advised to procure not more than 50 percent of their vaccine requirement due to the current limited supply of vaccines worldwide,” the DILG said in a Jan. 21 statement.

In a follow-up phone interview, Ulap chair and Marinduque Gov. Presbitero Velasco Jr. said only 17 out of 81 provinces had so far submitted their request to purchase vaccines.

He said other local governments would rather devote their resources to the actual vaccine distribution.