DOH urged to open vaccination to A4 group as AstraZeneca shots nearing expiration
FILE PHOTO: This is a photo illustration taken on March 11, 2021 shows vials of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine, a syringe, and a figurine in Paris. (Photo by JOEL SAGET / AFP)
MANILA, Philippines — Senator Nancy Binay on Thursday urged the Department of Health (DOH) to open up the government’s vaccination program to frontline personnel in essential sectors as 2 million doses of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine delivered to the country are nearing expiration.
“If necessary, buksan na nila sa A4 category to accommodate those who are willing to be vaccinated. I hope the DOH honors its commitment that it will not allow any vaccine in their possession to expire,” Binay said in a statement.
“Our foremost concern is to abate the rapid spread of the virus because we want to save more lives, just as everyone wants to get back to a normal life,” she added.
READ: Gripes aired over slow pace of COVID-19 vaccine rollout
The senator also pressed the DOH to immediately distribute the COVID-19 jabs stored in facilities to local government units (LGUs) in need of vaccines.
Article continues after this advertisement“Lalo pa ngayong maraming emerging epicenters ng COVID dapat ilabas na ng DOH ang mga stocks nila sa facilities at i-distribute na doon sa mga LGUs na nangangailangan ng mga bakuna,” she said.
Article continues after this advertisement(Now that there are emerging epicenters of COVID, the DOH should distribute the stocks of vaccines from the facilities and distribute them to LGUs that need the vaccine.)
As of May 11, DOH data showed that 83 percent of the 7,764,050 available doses of COVID-19 vaccines in the country have been distributed.
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Meanwhile, a total of 2,539,693 doses have been administered to those belonging under the A1 (healthcare workers), A2 (senior citizens), and A3 (persons with comorbidities) categories of the government’s vaccination priority list.
While some essential sector workers have been inoculated, it was only for a ceremonial vaccination on Labor Day, May 1.
READ: 150 quarantine hotel personnel inoculated vs COVID-19
The DOH earlier said it is rationalizing the two million doses of AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine provided by the COVAX Facility, considering that the shots are expected to reach their expiry by June and July.
Some 1.5 million doses of the said vaccine brand will expire in June while the other 500,000 will expire in July, according to Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire, who assured that appropriate measures are in place to ensure that all doses will be used up before then.
