BACOLOD CITY – The Negros Occidental provincial government is getting a boost in its coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) vaccination campaign for children aged 5 to 11 after the arrival of more vaccines this week.
As of Tuesday, the province has received an additional 125,000 doses of Pfizer-BioNTech jabs for the said age group.
“We hope to reach out to more children for vaccination so we can prepare them for the opening of classes that is already face-to-face,” Provincial Administrator Rayfrando Diaz II told reporters.
Data from the Department of Health-Western Visayas on April 4 showed Negros Occidental has 17,785 children aged 5 to 11 fully vaccinated against Covid-19, which is 4.9 percent of the target 363,249 vaccinees.
Some 36,959 children, or 10.17 percent, have availed of the first dose.
As of the end of March, the Provincial Health Office records showed 36,720 doses of Pfizer vaccines for the said age group have been allocated for the second dose and are expected to be fully utilized before the end of April.
According to the Department of Health, the Pfizer-BioNTech brand is recommended for active immunization for the prevention of Covid-19 caused by SARS-CoV-2 in individuals 5 years and older, based on the emergency use authorization issued by the Food and Drug Administration Philippines. (PNA)
