MANILA, Philippines — Some 38.7 million Filipinos have been fully vaccinated against coronavirus in the nine months since the government first launched its inoculation campaign.
This is equivalent to 35.49% of the population — less than half of the 90% that health experts stress must be fully vaccinated to attain herd immunity in the country.
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Of those fully vaccinated, some 561,135 — 0.51% of the total population — have received a booster shot, according to Department of Health figures as of December 6.
Nearly half of these jabs — 259,504 — were administered in Metro Manila. The latest DOH figures show that 67.8% of the capital region's population has been fully vaccinated.
The rollout of booster doses for the elderly, healthcare workers, and those with weakened immune systems began last month but was expanded to include eligible adults just last week.
Meanwhile, another 53.49% million or 49.06% of Filipinos have received the first shot of a two-dose regimen.
In the last seven days, officials have administered a daily average of 1.26 million doses, inching closer to their daily target of 1.5 million shots.
The government will launch a second mass vaccination drive next week, targeting to administer a total of 7 million doses.
Its initial drive, held from November 30 to December 2, saw the inoculation of eight million people, short of the nine million that officials initially targeted.