More than 2K immunocompromised individuals get 2nd booster — DOH

More than 2,000 immunocompromised individuals have received their second booster dose, according to the Department of Health (DOH) on Wednesday.

In a statement, the DOH said a total of 2,100 individuals were inoculated with second booster jab as of Tuesday, April 26.

“The National Vaccination Operations Center (NVOC) is continuously collecting and processing vaccination data on the ground. Based on the recent reports as of April 26, 2022 around 2,100 individuals were jabbed with the second booster,” the Health Department said.

The DOH said they shall wait for the recommendation of the Health Technological Assessment Council (HTAC) for the second booster of senior citizens and health workers, adding that to ensure “safety and efficacy” of second booster for these individuals.

“Since these recommendations require careful deliberation and review, it would be best to ensure that recommendations are made after thorough research so that the safety and efficacy of a second booster for these populations are ensured,” it added.

Based on the latest vaccination data from NVOC, there are 51,476,898 individuals due for booster doses, of which 13,043,715 or 25.34% has been administered as of April 26.

The DOH said it aims to inoculate around 690,000 individuals for the second booster dose.

National Task Force (NTF) Against COVID-19 medical adviser Dr. Ted Herbosa encouraged the public to get their COVID-19 vaccination, adding that there is a sufficient supply of vaccines in the country.

“We have on record ang nabigay na nating bakuna ay 145 million. Ang dumating sa Pilipinas kasama ng binili natin, dinonate sa atin ay over 254 million. So almost mga 90 million yung mga stockpile natin. Of course nababawasan ‘yan kada araw kasi nga nakabakuna tayo ng mga 200,000 everyday pa rin para sa mga first dose, second dose, at mga booster na tuloy tuloy naman hindi tayo humihinto,” Herbosa said at the Laging Handa briefing on Wednesday.

(We have on record the number of vaccines administered is 145 million. The vaccines that arrived which were bought and donated to us is over 254 million. So almost 90 million on our stockpiles, of course it decreases every day because we still vaccinate 200,000 individuals everyday for the first dose, second dose, and boosters. We did not stop vaccinating.)

“I do hope makumbinsi natin yung mga kababayan natin na magpabooster, magpasecond dose kung hindi pa nila natatanggap. Kahit mataggal na yung first dose niyo effective pa rin magpabakuna ng second dose, at ang booster kahit several months na pwede pa rin magpa-booster,” he added.

(I do hope we can convince our countrymen to get their booster, even the second dose for those who have not received it. Even if you received your first dose for a long time, it is still effective to vaccinate the second dose, and the booster, even after several months.)

The DOH earlier said only immunocompromised individuals who are 18 years old and above will only be allowed to receive their second booster shot as early as three months after their first booster. — RSJ, GMA News