MANILA, Philippines — The Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) on Thursday received its first batch of vaccines against COVID-19, enough to immunize 2,100 health workers.
In a statement, BARMM said 4,200 vials of vaccines developed by Chinese drugmaker Sinovac BioTech arrived in the region, which will be distributed to different provinces.
“From these initial 2,100 shots, 1,400 will be from Maguindanao, 972 in Lanao del Sur, 278 in Basilan, 1,032 in Sulu, and 518 for Tawi-Tawi […] while Cotabato City was already given by Region 12,” Bangsamoro health minister Dr. Amirel Usman said.
Sinovac’s vaccine is administered in two doses, with the second dose to be administered four weeks after the first.
Usman emphasized that at least 70% of the Bangsamoro constituents are the initial target to be vaccinated all throughout the region.
Health workers in the region (who work both in public and private hospitals), including frontline workers in the ministries of social services, education, and local government, are the top priorities for vaccination.
Health workers, who are willing to get vaccinated, are advised to sign waivers. However, they also have the option if they prefer another Covid-19 vaccine such as Pfizer or AstraZeneca.
The BARMM government is set to start vaccinating its health workers on Friday.
The Sinovac vaccine is recommended for clinically healthy individuals aged 18 to 59 years old. It is also certified as Halal by the Indonesian government.
Sinovac has minor effects on the inoculated person such as nausea, pain, swelling, and redness at the site of injection. Accordingly, these are normal vaccination reactions.