Roque won't get Sinovac COVID-19 vaccine shot on first day of rollout

Presidential spokesperson Harry Roque won’t get his first dose of Sinovac vaccine on Monday, the start of the official COVID-19 vaccination program in the country.

“Wala na for the day, might get tomorrow,” Roque said in a statement when asked why he did not get the Sinovac vaccine as he earlier announced. 

Roque earlier said he is willing to take the Sinovac jab.

Sinovac is the only available COVID-19 vaccine brand in the country so far, with 600,000 doses of the vaccine donated by China having arrived in the country on Sunday afternoon. 

Roque was supposed to join vaccine czar Carlito Galvez, Jr. Dr. Edsel Salvana and Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Director General Eric Domingo in getting a Sinovac vaccine on Monday.

In fact, he was shown at the pre-screening area at the Philippine General Hospital (PGH) having his blood pressure taken.

Pres’l Spox Harry Roque pre-screens for Sinovac vaccination @gmanews pic.twitter.com/9QdRO9iFBn

— Joseph Morong ???????? (@Joseph_Morong) March 1, 2021

However during the media briefing, Roque said the 100 slots for individuals scheduled to get the Sinovac jab for the day at PGH have already been filled. 

“Ubos na ang 100 for the day, we have to come back [to get our Sinovac jab],” he said.

The Philippine FDA found that Sinovac has an efficacy rate of 65% to 91% for healthy individuals aged 18 to 59 years old.  

The Philippine FDA, however, did not recommend the use of Sinovac on health workers since its efficacy rate only reached 50.4% in that group.

Aside from PGH, the priority hospitals for vaccination are the Lung Center of the Philippines, Veterans Memorial Medical Center, Dr. Jose N. Rodriguez Memorial Hospital and Sanitarium (Tala Hospital), PNP General Hospital, Pasig City General Hospital, and the V. Luna Medical Center. —KG, GMA News