Galvez: COVAX to give PH 10 million more Pfizer vaccine doses

(FILE PHOTO) A vial labeled with the Pfizer-BioNTech coronavirus disease (COVID-19) vaccine is seen in this illustration picture taken March 19, 2021. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo

MANILA, Philippines — The World Health Organization, through the global initiative COVAX facility, will deliver 10 million additional doses of the U.S.-made Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine to the Philippines, vaccine czar Carlito Galvez Jr. said Thursday.

During a briefing with President Rodrigo Duterte, Galvez said the doses will be donated by the United States government.

He said the U.S. government initially pledged to give about 6 million Pfizer doses but later added an additional 4.5 million doses, making it about 10 million doses.

Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana and Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr. went to the U.S. to thank the U.S. government for the doses, Galvez added.

“Nagkaroon na ng official pronouncement ang WHO for additional delivery of 10 million doses of Pfizer. Nagpapasalamat din kami sa WHO sa kanilang masipag na pagfollow-up sa ating mga donors,” he said.

(The WHO has said it will give an additional 10 million doses of Pfizer. We also thank the WHO for following up on our donors.)

Galvez said the Philippines has so far received over 54.5 million COVID-19 vaccine doses, 13 million of which are from the COVAX facility, and 3.6 million are donated by other countries.

This number included the latest delivery of over 700,000 Pfizer doses on Wednesday night.

The government has so far administered 39.5 million vaccine doses, 22 million of which are first doses while 17.3 million are administered as second doses.

/MUF