1st hospital outside NCR to receive AstraZeneca vaccine starts inoculation

QualiMed Hospital in Sta. Rosa, Laguna, the first hospital outside the National Capital Region to receive the AstraZeneca vaccines, began inoculation against COVID-19 on Sunday.

Dr. Edwin Mercado, vice-chair of the Qualimed Hospital Network, received the first shot in a vaccination ceremony.

Ayala Healthcare Holdings, Inc. (AC Health) CEO and President Paolo Borromeo said that all of their 378 staff members are willing to get vaccinated with any vaccines.

According to a report by Luisito Santos on Super Radyo dzBB, the hospital received 300 doses of COVID-19 vaccines.

#BantayBakuna: Kauna-unahang vaccination roll-out ng AstraZeneca sa labas ng Metro Manila, isinagawa sa Qualimed Hospital sa Sta. Rosa, Laguna. | via @luisitosantos03 pic.twitter.com/F84H4TyaXs

— DZBB Super Radyo (@dzbb) March 7, 2021

Also present during the event were vaccine czar Carlito Galvez Jr., and testing czar Vince Dizon.

According to Galvez, over 100 hospitals already received an initial supply of COVID-19 vaccines.

On February 28, around 600,000 doses of COVID-19 vaccines from Sinovac that were donated by the Chinese government arrived in the country.

On March 4, a total of 487,200 doses of the COVID-19 vaccine from Oxford University and British-Swedish pharmaceutical firm AstraZeneca also arrived in the Philippines under the COVAX facility.

At least 38,400 doses more from AstraZeneca are expected to arrive on Sunday. —LBG, GMA News