Alice Dixson defends getting 2nd Pfizer shot in Philippines after first one abroad

Alice Dixson on Monday defended herself after netizens questioned why she was allowed to get a second dose out of the first shipment of Pfizer-BioNTech vaccines to arrive in the Philippines.

The shipment arrived on May 10, consisting of 193,050 doses. Of this number, 132,020 shots were allocated to Metro Manila

Dixson, meanwhile, received her first dose of the Pfizer vaccine last month in Canada, and her second and last jab in Manila on May 20.

Some netizens in the comments section of her Instagram post criticized her getting her second shot here, with one saying that second doses of the Pfizer vaccine aren’t available yet in the Philippines. Another questioned the "fairness" of her getting a Pfizer shot while some seniors were still waiting for theirs.

In response, Alice said that she waited for the Pfizer vaccine and followed the process like everyone else.

“I waited for the Pfizer vaccines to arrive in the Philippines, that’s why I also registered like everyone then I shared the sites and link process,” she wrote in a mix of English and Filipino.

“Remove the ‘artists’ or special treatment out of the equation. What will you do if you were in my shoes?” she continued. 

She added that she needed the Pfizer vaccine since it was what she got as a first dose abroad.

“Other kababayans do not need Pfizer and can still get other brands as guided in the public info links provided,” she wrote.

“Know that everything will work itself out because more vaccines are coming and everyone will get vaccinated. Nothing will be put to waste,” she added.

The Department of Health, meanwhile, said it sees nothing wrong with the matter.

“As long as the vaccine is registered or is approved by the [Food and Drug Administration] here in our country...we will not deprive people of having their second doses to be fully vaccinated because she was given the first dose in another country,” Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said Monday.

The preference for the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccines among Filipinos has led to fewer people lining up to receive the Sinovac vaccine at some vaccination sites, and the government to institute a rule that people lining up for the jab will only be informed of which brand they are getting at the site.

Alice and her baby, whom she first introduced to the public in April, came home to the Philippines in the first week of May. — BM, GMA News