Roque: Over 114,000 individuals vaccinated vs. COVID-19

The Philippines has vaccinated 114,615 individuals against COVID-19 so far, presidential spokesperson Harry Roque said Thursday.

Roque said that of the total number, 25,538 were given the COVID-19 vaccine within the day.

The total number of vaccine doses deployed, on the other hand, stands at 796,950 consisting of 440,450 doses of Sinovac and 356,500 doses of AstraZeneca vaccines.

In addition, Roque reported the country has 422 vaccination centers so far, and that 348 of these conducted vaccinations today in 17 regions covering 176 local government units.

The Philippine Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recommended Sinovac for clinically healthy individuals aged 18 to 59 years old. The Philippine FDA, however, did not recommend Sinovac on health care workers since its efficacy rate in such group only reached 50.4%.

But the Health Department ultimately endorsed Sinovac for health workers' use, saying it will be beneficial to them since Sinovac is 78% effective against moderate COVID-19 symptoms and 100% effective against severe symptoms.

The AstraZeneca vaccine, on the other hand, has been found to be 70% effective after the first dose—a rating which increases when the second dose is administered four to 12 weeks after the first dose based on Philippine FDA evaluation.

The FDA recommended AstraZeneca vaccines for individuals aged 18 and above.

The country’s vaccination program started last March 1.

Only 1.12 million donated doses of COVID-19 vaccine from Sinovac and AstraZeneca—both administered in two doses—have been delivered to the country so far.

The government is eyeing to vaccinate 50 million people within 2021. — RSJ, GMA News