PROTECTING THE ELDERLY. Medical workers administer Sinovac Covid-19 booster shots to the elderly at a mall in Mandaluyong City on Monday (Jan. 3, 2022). Rising cases prompted the Inter-Agency Task Force to place the National Capital Region under Alert Level 3 until January 15, thus the continued reminder to get vaccinated against the dreaded virus. (PNA photo by Joey O. Razon)
MANILA – The Philippines has already administered 108,853,491 doses of the coronavirus vaccines, including second shots for 49,853,264 Filipinos and 1,847,926 booster or additional doses, as of Monday.
The country’s total vaccines doses received stand at 210,633,110, both procured and donated, as of the end of 2021.
National Task Force (NTF) Against Covid-19 chief implementer, Secretary Carlito Galvez Jr. warned the country is "not yet out of the woods" as the cases are spiking once again.
He reminded of the need to inoculate more Filipinos as much as possible, especially the elderly and those with comorbidities.
"As what we have said, vaccine supply is no longer a concern, as we now have sufficient doses to fully inoculate more than 100 million Filipinos. The greater challenge now is how to get these Covid-19 jabs into the arms of our countrymen as soon as possible," Galvez said in his year-end message.
The start of the year, according to Galvez, is another chance to encourage the unvaccinated to get jabbed and for the eligible ones to avail of booster shots.
Local government units must also continue to strengthen their prevent-detect-isolate-treat-reintegrate (PDITR) strategies and impose granular lockdowns if necessary.
"We also need to continuously upgrade our Covid-19 health care facilities throughout the country by adding more beds, oxygen tanks, and Covid-19 medicines," he added.
Galvez said the NTF is adamant to achieve its target population protection of at least 77 million fully vaccinated Filipinos by the first quarter this year.
"As the Duterte Administration enters its final year, the National Task Force on Covid-19 is committed to fulfilling its mandate of protecting the health of the Filipino people, as we revive our nation’s economy," he stated. (PNA)
