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Vaccines requested from UK, Germany for outbound healthcare workers, DOLE clarifies


The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) on Wednesday clarified that the government is not sending nurses to the United Kingdom and Germany in exchange of vaccines for the rollout, but requesting that the healthcare workers deployed be inoculated by the host countries.

"The department wishes to correct some sort of distorted notion being huddled by some quarters about the intention in sending or lifting the cap on the number of nurses being requested by UK and Germany," DOLE-Information and Public Service (IPS) director Rolly Francia said in a virtual forum.

"Hindi po intensyon ng department na ituring na materyal upang i-trade ang ating nurses para lang makakuha ng vaccines. At hindi rin po intensyon na ituring na commodity ang ating nurses para i-barter with whatever material that we may have," he added.

Francia made the statement as he addressed misconceptions that the Philippine government is allowing its healthcare workers to be deployed to UK and Germany in exchange of vaccines.

He said the discussion started when UK requested to be exempted from the cap imposed by the Philippine government on its nurses and healthcare workers.

Francia said the Philippine government requested the UK to provide additional vaccines to OFWs working as healthcare workers.

"Baka sakali, request lang naman 'yun, na kung magbibigay man sila, eh 'di dagdagan na, magbibigay din lang eh. Halimbawa kung 5,000 'yung request nilang nurses, alangan namang for 5,000 nurses lamang ang vaccine na ibibigay nila. Kung 10,000 nurses, alangan namang for 10,000 [lang]. Baka kaya naman nilang magbigay ng more than for our other OFWs who had returned or who have been repatriated," he said.—AOL, GMA News

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