Gov’t should clarify policy on COVID-19 vaccination, says lawmaker

Albay Rep. Joey Salceda. FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines — The government should clearly communicate its vaccination policy to the public, as confusion may erode the public’s confidence in life-saving COVID-19 vaccines, said Albay Rep. Joey Salceda as he warned of “hiccups” that undermine the national vaccination program.

“Demand is still very strong, and that as long as there is supply, enough Filipinos will take the vaccines. The problem is that we still have several ambiguities in our vaccination policies. People don’t know whether they will be punished for not getting vaccinated, and whether there is some system that records who has been vaccinated and who has not been vaccinated,” he said.

With more vaccines arriving in the country each month, Salceda is optimistic that, at this rate, 70 percent of the country’s 110 million population will be vaccinated by April 2022.

Salceda added: “However, we cannot afford the kind and scale of confusion we recently experienced as individuals walked in at vaccination sites.”

Salceda said that “clearly communicated policies on vaccination and streamlined preregistration and prevaccination systems will be crucial to vaccinating enough Filipinos to achieve herd immunity by the end of the year.”

He made the remarks after thousands of Filipinos crowded vaccination hubs in Manila and Las Piñas City a day before Metro Manila was placed on lockdown.

Gabriela Rep. Arlene Brosas blamed President Duterte for the chaos after he threatened to arrest those not vaccinated.