Concepcion pushes vax, boosters to avert May surge

MANILA, Philippines — The Philippines can avert a projected surge in active COVID-19 cases next month by ramping up vaccination to include the administration of booster shots, according to presidential adviser for entrepreneurship Joey Concepcion.

Speaking at yesterday’s Laging Handa public briefing, Concepcion emphasized that the Philippines is in a position to prevent active COVID-19 cases from reaching 300,000 by May, as projected by the World Health Organization (WHO).

All it takes is to have those qualified for boosters to get that third dose, he said, pointing out that P40 billion worth of vaccines could expire and go to waste because of the low booster uptake.

The Go Negosyo founder said there are 80 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines available in the country, 27 million of which would expire in June and July.

Of the 90 million target, the country currently has 67 million fully vaccinated individuals. A little over 53 million individuals comprising seniors, teenagers and adults have yet to receive their booster shots.

Earlier, the WHO said it is possible for the country to have 300,000 active COVID-19 cases in weeks if people lower their guard.

Health Secretary Francisco Duque III said a gradual increase in COVID-19 cases has already been observed in 14 areas under Alert Level 1 in the country.

Concepcion said people opting not to get the booster shot now seem to be waiting for cases to rise first, but that might be too late with vaccines expiring.

“Why take the risk?” he asked. “Let’s maintain the wall of immunity and not waste the vaccines... Let’s protect ourselves and allow the economy to grow and help our citizens.”

To help increase vaccinations, Concepcion proposed requiring booster cards, putting an expiry date on primary vaccination cards, allowing 12- to 17-year-olds to get their first booster shot and a second booster for the vulnerable population as soon as possible.

At yesterday’s Kapihan sa Manila Bay media forum, vaccine czar Carlito Galvez Jr. said the government may not be able to meet its target of vaccinating 90 million Filipinos by June 30, the end of President Duterte’s term.

“I agree with (Health Undersecretary Myrna) Cabotaje. We have great respect for her. She witnessed the daily intake of vaccines. Right now, it slowed down,” Galvez said of the DOH official’s admission that the target will not be easily achieved in Duterte’s term.

He said the government recorded 22 million vaccinations in December last year, but this went down to 10 million last February with the onset of the election period, complacency over the decline in COVID-19 cases and lack of encouragement for people to get booster shots.

Citing vaccinations this month, Galvez said: “Honestly, we had a drawback of 2.5 million.”

Cabotaje said the government would strive to reach its target by ramping up house-to-house vaccination programs and bring the vaccination to workplaces.

“After the Holy Week, we will have more special vaccination days in areas where the uptake is low,” she said.

Go Negosyo has also intensified its campaign to encourage more Filipinos to get vaccinated and get their boosters.

Joining the campaign are Philippine College of Physicians president Dr. Maricar Limpin; Vaccine Expert Panel’s Dr. Nina Gloriani and Dr. Rontgene Solante; Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases special adviser Dr. Ted Herbosa; infectious diseases expert Dr. Edsel Salvaña; former health secretary Dr. Esperanza Cabral; OCTA Research fellows Dr. Benjamin Co, Fr. Nic Austriaco and Guido David; Philippine Society of Pathologists president Dr. Roberto Padua and health reform advocate Dr. Tony Leachon.

“We’re trying to prevent people from getting severely ill and overwhelming the health care system. We want to maintain the Alert Level 1 status, but we need people to stay healthy and keep the engines of the economy running,” Concepcion said.

Even opposition Sen. Leila de Lima, who is seeking reelection, urged governors and mayors to heed the WHO’s call to focus on increasing the inoculation rates, particularly in barangays that have yet to reach 70 percent vaccination coverage.

“The easing of COVID-19 restrictions and increase in public mobility should not cause the government to be complacent and lose focus on the goal to inoculate as many people as possible,” said De Lima. “The pandemic is far from over, and vaccines are still our best weapon against the deadly virus.”

Meanwhile, Galvez told the Kapihan that the next administration will inherit P45 billion for the procurement of more vaccines against COVID-19 should there be another major surge in cases after Duterte’s term.

The National Task Force against COVID-19 chief implementer said the next administration is also assured of having an available stock of 100 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines of different brands.

“The P45 billion is our multi-lateral loans from the ADB (Asian Development Bank). Considering that there will be change of administration, we intended not to use this P45 billion because the 100 million vaccines that we have in our stocks will suffice for 2022,” Galvez said. – Jose Rodel Clapano, Cecille Suerte Felipe