LAOAG CITY, Ilocos Nort — At least 23,460 doses of bivalent COVID-19 vaccines have been delivered to the regional vaccine storage facility of the Department of Health in San Fernando City, La Union province, over the weekend.
The bivalent vaccines, manufactured by Pfizer, is expected to protect recipients against the Omicron variant and would be rolled out in a “phased approach” as a third booster shot to prioritize eligible health workers and senior citizens, the DOH said in a statement.
The bivalent shots must be given at least four months after receiving the second booster dose.
The DOH said the vaccine would be rolled out in 12 hospitals in the region, including five DOH-retained hospitals, namely the Ilocos Training and Regional Medical Center, the Ilocos Sur Medical Center, the Mariano Marcos Memorial Hospital and Medical Center, the Region I Medical Center, and the Conrado F. Estrella Regional Medical and Trauma Center.
The Ilocos Sur Provincial Hospital Gabriela Silang; Pangasinan Provincial Hospital, the Lingayen District Hospital, the Western Pangasinan District Hospital, the Eastern Pangasinan District Hospital, the Bayambang District Hospital, and the Urdaneta District Hospital were also included in the phased rollout.
“All identified health facilities shall already start the roll out as soon as they receive their supply of COVID-19 vaccine from Pfizer Bivalent,” the DOH said.
COVID-19 cases in the region have risen in the past week prompting health officials to encourage the public to get their booster shots.
Only 40 percent of the 3.8-million individuals who received their primary vaccine doses had at least one booster shot, the DOH said.
In its weekly COVID-19 bulletin, the DOH said 273 cases were added to the region’s case load between June 4 and 10.
At least eight of the active cases are in health facilities for severe and critical symptoms, the DOH said.
The health care utilization rate continued to be in the “safe” zone despite the rise in COVID-19 cases in the past week. INQ
RELATED STORY
Bivalent vaccines’ timely protection – PressReader