Regions with high vaccine coverage should shift focus to boosters —Galvez

Regions with high COVID-19 vaccine coverage should shift their focus to administering boosters, vaccine czar Secretary Carlito Galvez Jr. said Monday, adding that the country is lagging in this regard.

At the Talk to the People briefing led by President Rodrigo Duterte, Galvez said that 12 of the country's 17 regions may already be considered as having high vaccine coverage. These regions should focus on offering boosters, while the remaining five regions should try to boost their primary vaccinations.

"We need to direct the 12 regions with high coverage to shift their focus [to] administering the boosters. Kailangan din po natin ang tulong ng mga pharmacies and medical clinics para po ma-expand ang mga boosters sa tulong ng ating private sector," he said.

"Kailangan din po na mag-dedicate tayo ng mga araw sa pagbabakuna ng boosters," he added. "At kailangan din po natin ang tulong ng lahat para hikayatin ang ating mga mamamayan na magpa-booster para tuluy-tuloy at may dagdag na proteksyon sa susunod sa future surges."

The five regions that are lagging in COVID-19 vaccinations are Region 5 (with 69.96% fully vaccinated), CARAGA (69.75%), MIMAROPA (68.56%), Region 12 (61.25%), and BARMM (28.02%).

Galvez added that 9,709,375 booster shots have already been administered nationwide so far.

Galvez said that the government's goal is to fully vaccinate 90 million Filipinos by June 2022. — BM, GMA News