Galvez: Philippines has so far received 85.5-M COVID-19 vaccine doses

Vaccine czar Carlito Galvez Jr. on Saturday said the Philippines has so far received 85,575,600 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines since February.

This was after more than 1.3 million doses of Moderna COVID-19 vaccine arrived in Manila on Saturday.

Galvez said in the first week of October alone, the country received more than 14.2 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines, averaging 1.5 million doses arriving each day.

With this, Galvez called on local government units to be creative in scaling up the vaccination rollout in their areas.

“Wala nang problema sa ating supply. Ang challenge now is throughput, administration, and demand. Kaya nananawagan tayo sa lahat ng LGUs kasama ang DILG, mayors, governors, military, at kapulisan, paghusayan natin ang pagbabakuna,” he said.

(There is no problem anymore on our supply. The challenge now is throughput, administration, and demand. This is why we are appealing to LGUs together with the Department of the Interior and Local Government, mayors, governors, military, and police, to improve vaccination.)

Galvez said LGUs may look for ways to stir up demand for the vaccines among their constituents.

He also said local chief executives should initiate partnerships with different agencies and the private sector to have more people vaccinated against COVID-19.

“Kung kailangan nila ng mga sasakyan to transport people or healthcare workers to vaccination sites, they can request and tap the PNP and AFP,” he said. 

(If they need vehicles to transport people or healthcare workers to vaccination sites, they can request and tap the Philippine National Police and Armed Forces of the Philippines.)

“With the steady arrival of vaccines, we call on our local leaders and regional directors to set aside political differences and focus on our efforts to inoculate as many people as possible,” Galvez said. 

The vaccine czar said 36 million vaccine doses are currently in national warehouses and will be deployed across the country.

More than 49 million vaccine doses have been administered as of October 8, and 23 million individuals are fully vaccinated against COVID-19, the National Task Force Against COVID-19 said.

Galvez said he is confident the Philippines will achieve its goal of fully vaccinating 50% to 70% of its target population by the end of the year, due to the current vaccine supply, confirmed deliveries, and scaled up vaccine rollout of LGUs.

The vaccine czar expressed gratitude to the US government and the private sector led by ICTSI and Zuellig Pharma Corporation for supporting fully the vaccination program.

Zuellig Pharma Corporation senior vice president for corporate affairs Raymond Azurin on Saturday said 9.9 million doses of Moderna COVID-19 vaccines have been delivered so far in the country.

US Embassy Deputy Counselor for Economic Affairs Zeenat Syed meanwhile reaffirmed the US government's commitment to support the Philippines' COVID-19 response and vaccine rollout.

“The United States is very proud that US vaccines are supporting the government’s vaccination effort and that they are helping vaccinate millions of Philippine citizens against COVID 19,” she said. —KG, GMA News