Vaccination of essential workers (Photo from My Makati Facebook)
MANILA, Philippines — Makati City on Thursday opened a vaccination site exclusively for essential workers or those included in the A4 priority group, with another site set to open on Friday.
“Essential workers” are defined as all individuals who are required to leave their residences because of their jobs.
Mayor Abby Binay led the opening of the first site in the Glorietta 5 mall on Thursday before vaccinations began on the mall’s third floor along Ayala Avenue.
Binay said the Glorietta 5 site aims to vaccinate up to 500 individuals who have registered daily online in the A4 category.
Another vaccination site for essential workers is set to open on the second floor of San Lorenzo Place, at the corner of Chino Roces Avenue and Edsa, on Friday. Up to 400 individuals in the A4 group per day are targeted for vaccination.
This, according to Binay, was made possible after the local government’s agreement with the city’s private sector.
She stressed that this effort is due to the importance of fast and safe vaccinations, especially among private-sector workers who are considered ‘economic frontliners’.
“Nakasalalay sa kanila (economic frontliners) ang muling pagsigla ng mga negosyo sa lungsod at tuloy-tuloy na pagbangon ng lokal na ekonomiya,” said Binay in a statement.
(The revival of businesses in the city and the continued recovery of the local economy depend on economic frontliners.)
Aside from the two new vaccination sites, Binay also announced the launch of its website makatibusiness.safemakati.com which aims to give companies and establishments the opportunity to register their employees under the A4 category.
Meanwhile, vaccination of those belonging to A1 (medical frontliners), A2 (senior citizens) and A3 (persons with comorbidities) category, will continue at the Makati Coliseum, the Vax OTG at the Circuit Makati grounds, and at other vaccination sites in public schools.
According to the Makati PIO, 69,591 Makati citizens have been inoculated with the first dose of vaccine as of June 10, while 36,537 have completed immunization with the second dose.
The Philippines first launched vaccination against COVID-19 for the A4 priority group on Monday, June 7.
The A4 list includes private-sector workers who are physically present in their workplace; employees in government agencies and instrumentalities, including government-owned or controlled corporations and local government units; informal sector workers and self-employed individuals who work outside their homes; and those working in private households.