The Philippines on Wednesday received 400,000 more doses of China's Sinovac COVID-19 vaccines meant to sustain vaccination efforts as the country battles a renewed surge of virus infections.
The jabs were donated again by China in addition to the 600,000 initial vaccine doses it sent to the Philippines late in February.
Health Sec. Francisco Duque III said the fresh batch of vaccines will be used to speed up the inoculation of health workers, who are first in line to receive jabs.
"We shall see to it that all of our healthcare workers, not just in the National Capital Region but in the whole country, are given the protection they need and deserve..." Duque said in a statement.
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The Philippines is currently rolling out its COVID-19 vaccination program using donated Sinovac and AstraZeneca vaccines.
COVID-19 vaccine czar Sec. Carlito Galvez Jr. said some two million more Sinovac and AstraZeneca vaccines would be made available to the Philippines by the end of March.
If vaccine deliveries meet the Philippines' expected timelines, Galvez said vaccines could be made available to the general public in late April or early May. The government aims to inoculate some 70 million Filipinos this year.
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