738,913 vaccine doses administered in PHL so far, DOH says
(Eagle News) — The Philippines ranks third in terms of the number of COVID-19 vaccine doses administered among Association of Southeast Asian Nations countries, according to Department of Health data.
According to the data, as of March 30, the Philippines has administered 738,913 vaccine doses since the start of its vaccination drive on March 1.
Indonesia ranked number one on the list, with 11,832,795 vaccine doses administered since Jan. 13, followed by Singapore, with 1318192 vaccine doses since January.
Malaysia ranked fourth after the Philippines, with 661661 vaccine doses administered since Feb. 24.
Cambodia, according to the DOH data, was in fifth place, with 296149 vaccine doses since Feb. 10.
Both Indonesia and the Philippines are so far administering Sinovac and AstraZeneca vaccine doses.
Cambodia is also using the AstraZeneca vaccine coupled with the Sinopharm vaccine.
Singapore and Malaysia are both using Pfizer-BioNTech’s vaccine, but Singapore is complementing it with the Moderna vaccine, while Malaysia with the Sinovac vaccine.
According to the DOH, as of March 30, there are 2596 vaccination sites in the Philippines.
It said Metro Manila has begun administering the second dose of vaccines to healthcare workers.
The inoculation of senior citizens and persons with comorbidities has also begun.
“With the recent arrival of 1M doses of procured vaccines, the total number of available doses have doubled, and doses distributed throughout the country have significantly increased, with a total of 1,468,200 doses delivered,” the DOH said.
The government has said the aim was to inoculate 50 to 60 percent of the population to achieve herd immunity.
Herd immunity takes place when most of the population is immune to an infectious disease, thereby providing indirect protection to the rest.