Bacolod mayor appeals for more vaccines as COVID-19 cases rise

BACOLOD CITY—Mayor Evelio Leonardia appealed to the national government to send additional vaccines to the city as its number of COVID-19 cases rises.

In a letter to Secretary Carlito Galvez Jr., chief implementer and vaccine czar of the National Task Force Against COVID-19, Leonardia said they need to accelerate the pace of vaccinations in Bacolod.

“The city government is doing its best to contain the spread of the virus, but Bacolod is still experiencing an alarming and persistent surge in COVID-19 cases,” the mayor said.

“Hospitalizations have hit record levels, and although we have recently added additional rooms and beds, our Temporary Treatment and Monitoring Facilities (TTMF) are reaching full capacity,” he added.

Hospitals in the city, he said, have experienced a shortage of staff members.

Leonardia said Bacolod is coordinating with the national pandemic task force, the local health facilities, and medical societies.

“Although we have already started COVID-19 vaccinations last March 5, 2021, we have only so far fully vaccinated 11,047 persons and partially vaccinated 53,466, out of our population of 624,987, owing to the limited supply of vaccines arriving in our city,” the mayor said.

“Vaccination is a crucial strategy in ending this pandemic. That is why additional doses would be of great help to improve the COVID-19 situation in Bacolod,” he added.

Bacolod City was recently made a priority area for vaccination, but the only vaccines it has received were 7,800 doses on June 30 and 10,000 last Tuesday.

“We believe that if we ramp up vaccinations, we will be able to significantly reduce COVID-19 deaths and hospitalizations,” the mayor said.

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