Pilot ‘vaccine bubbles’ may be done in NCR- Neda chief

MANILA, Philippines— A pilot implementation of so-called “vaccine bubbles,” which will give fully vaccinated persons greater mobility may be implemented in the National Capital Region.

National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) chief Karl Chua revealed this on Thursday when asked during the hearing by the Senate committee on finance on the proposed “vaccine bubbles.”

“I would support the pilot of that because at this rate, I’ d like to know what works and what doesn’t work so I would support the pilot of that,” Chua said responding to the queries of Senator Sherwin Gatchalian.

“Perhaps we can have it across the NCR but gradually and slowly, in a gradual process. For instance, yung capacity, we start at 10 percent, 20 percent and so on. I would not start with 50 percent or 100 percent,” he added.

Various groups have been pushing for “vaccine bubbles” in a bid to reopen the economy despite the continuing threat of the more transmissible Delta variant of coronavirus.

The proposal however did not get the support of the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Commission on Human Rights.

Dr. Rabindra Abeyasinghe, the WHO representative to the Philippines, pointed out that even those who are fully vaccinated can still get the virus that causes COVID-19 and can still infect other people.

Limiting the movement of unvaccinated people, however, while giving more movement to inoculated may lead to discrimination, CHR earlier warned.

/MUF