Only 25% of NCR respondents willing to get COVID-19 vaccine, poll shows

Only one out of four of Metro Manila respondents are willing to get themselves vaccinated against the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), the results of an OCTA Research survey showed Monday.

In a non-commissioned poll conducted from December 9 to 13 last year, the independent team of experts interviewed 600 respondents aged 18 and above regarding their willingness to get a COVID-19 vaccine.

The survey found that only 25% of people in the capital region were willing to get vaccinated against COVID-19, 29% of whom belonged to socioeconomic Class ABC, 24% to Class D, and 27% to Class E.

Meanwhile, the remaining 75% of respondents were either unsure or unwilling to get a COVID-19 vaccine.

Nearly half or 47% of respondents said they were uncertain about getting inoculated against COVID-19, 52% of whom were from Class ABC, 48% from Class D, and 42% from Class E.

The remaining 28% of respondents said they would not get vaccinated against COVID-19.

Of this number, 19% were part of Class ABC, 28% were from Class D, and 31% were from Class E.

Malacañang previously said COVID-19 hotspots Metro Manila, Metro Cebu, and Davao would be prioritized in vaccination efforts due to their high number of infections. 

Out of the 478,861 cases nationwide as of Monday afternoon, more than 211,000 were registered in Metro Manila, according to the Department of Health. 

Vice President Leni Robredo earlier urged a house-to-house education campaign to allay fears about vaccination and warned that the rollout of a vaccine with a low efficacy rate may dampen public confidence in inoculation. 

President Rodrigo Duterte had also said that the government would not shoulder the cost of COVID-19 vaccines for those belonging to Class ABC since they had the capacity “to buy the medicines for themselves.” 

The Philippines has so far secured 2.6 million doses of the vaccine developed by British-Swedish drugmaker AstraZeneca with the aid of the private sector

Vaccine czar Secretary Carlito Galvez Jr. earlier said the goal was to lock up 60 million doses for the second and third quarter of 2021. Several local government units have also allotted millions of pesos for the purchase of COVID-19 vaccines. — BM, GMA News