The Philippine Red Cross will sell Moderna COVID-19 vaccines at P3,500 for two doses, said its chairman, Sen. Richard Gordon said Monday, as the country moved to immunize up to 50 million people this year.
Over 2.9 million COVID-19 vaccine doses have been administered in the country as of May 15, half of them given to medical frontliners. Of the total, 714,432 completed their two doses, Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque said also on Monday.
"If we are going to wait for the [government's] vaccines to come, mahuhuli so those of you who cannot wait, you pay... P3,500 and that's two doses already," Gordon told ANC. Moderna boasts a 95% efficacy rate.
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The senator ordered 200,000 doses of the American-made vaccines through tycoon Enrique Razon, who leads the procurement of the Moderna jabs. Seven million doses of the vaccine order will be allotted to frontline workers of the private sector while 13 million will be used by the government.
The vaccines, good for 100,000 people, is set to arrive in June 2021. Gordon said the Red Cross also ordered AstraZeneca vaccine doses, which will arrive in 2022.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted emergency use authorization (EUA) for Moderna and AstraZeneca this year.
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