FILE PHOTO. REUTERS/Emily Elconin
Gatchalian, who chairs the Senate committee on basic education, arts and culture, made the remark after the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted the emergency use authorization (EUA) of Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine for children aged 5 to 11.
READ: FDA okays use of Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine to children 5-11 years old
“Ngayong aprubado na ang pagbabakuna kontra COVID-19 para sa mga batang may edad na 5 hanggang 11, ang susunod na hakbang ay ang paghahanda ng ating mga lokal na pamahalaan para sa pagbabakuna,” Gatchalian said in a statement.
(Now that the vaccination against COVID-19 has been approved for children aged 5 to 11, the next step is for the LGUs to prepare for the inoculation drive.)
“Napapanahon ang pagbabakuna natin sa ating mga kabataan lalo na’t inaasahan ang muling pagbubukas ng mga paaralan para sa face-to-face classes. Kung marami sa mga kabataan ang mababakunahan, mas tataas ang kumpiyansa ng mga mag-aaral at kanilang mga magulang,” he added.
(The vaccination is just in time for the expected re-opening of schools for face-to-face classes. If the vaccination rate among children is high, there will be more confidence among students and their parents.)
Gatchalian also urged the National Task Force Against COVID-19 to help typhoon Odette-hit LGUs in the rollout of COVID-19 vaccines for children.
The Department of Education (DepEd) earlier said it is not going to back out of its plan to expand the conduct of limited face-to-face classes next year despite the threat of the Omicron variant.