The Philippines is eyeing to start COVID-19 vaccinations in 2021 as promising results of various vaccine trials raise hopes that the end of the global pandemic is in sight.
With the hopes of securing an initial supply of vaccines enough to inoculate some 20 million Filipinos, the government has set out its priorities on who gets immunity first among the country's 100-million population.
President Rodrigo Duterte's spokesperson Harry Roque said the government is looking at two priorities for COVID-19 vaccines: sectoral and geographical.
For geographical priorities, Roque said areas on top of the government's mind are virus hotspots Metro Manila, Cebu, and Davao.
"Uunahin nating bigyan ng COVID vaccine ang mga lugar na maraming kaso ng COVID-19 tulad ng Metro Manila, Metro Cebu at Davao. Ito po yung geographical priorities," Roque said in a Palace press briefing.
ALSO READ:
Emergency Use of COVID-19 Vaccine, Drugs Allowed, Conditions Set
Philippines to Start WHO Vaccine Trials in January
WHO Warns Virus Crisis Not Over as Vaccine Rollout Starts
Roque said medical frontliners would be the first to get jabbed with COVID-19 vaccines.
"Sila ang nangunguna sa ating laban sa COVID-19 natural lamang na sila ang mabigyan ng proteksyon laban sa virus," he said.
Here is the Philippines' order of prioritization for COVID-19 vaccines:
1st Priority: Frontline Health Workers
- Workers in Public and Private Health Facilities
- Public Health Workers and Local Government Unit Contact Tracers
- Barangay Health Workers including members of the Barangay Health Emergency Response Teams
- Health workers in other government offices
2nd Priority: Indigent Senior Citizens
3rd Priority: Remaining Senior Citizens
4th Priority: Remaining Indigent Population
5th Priority: Uniformed Personnel
- Philippine National Police
- Armed Forces of the Philippines
- Philippine Coast Guard
- Bureau of Fire Protection
- Citizen Armed Force Geographical Unit
