(Eagle News) – Health Secretary Francisco Duque III led the vaccination of health workers at the Lung Center of the Philippines on Monday, March 1 using China’s donation of Sinovac vaccines.
Duque wanted to be among those vaccinated, but because of his age, 64, this precluded him from getting the Sinovac jab.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) that granted the emergency use authorization (EUA) said that it is recommending the Sinovac vaccine, Coronavac, for healthy and able-bodied individuals aged 18 to 59 years old.
Duque thanked China for the Sinovac vaccines. He noted that the Philippines was the only country among the 153 countries which got vaccine donations from China, where the vaccines had been delivered by China using its military cargo plane. Other countries had to send their planes to get the vaccine donations from China.
The health chief was the one who vaccinated Dra. Eileen Aniceto, a pulmonologist and head of the emergency and outpatient department of the Lung Center of the Philippines. She is the first medical frontliner at the hospital to receive the Sinovac shot.
He also thanked President Rodrigo Duterte for his leadership.
Meanwhile, Quezon City mayor Joy Belmonte expressed appreciation that four of the hospitals were the simultaneous vaccination had been done Monday were in Quezon City.
I’m extremely happy because sabay-sabay po ang rollout ng bakuna dito po sa apat na ospital dito po sa lungsod Quezon,” she said in a speech during the vaccination event at the Lung Center.
“I’m very grateful and thankful that you chose Quezon City to be among the first (cities to get the vaccines),” she added.
The vaccines were administered at the following hospitals located in Quezon City: the Lung Center of the Philippines, the Veterans Memorial Medical Center (VMMC), the PNP General Hospital, and at the V. Luna Medical Center.
(Eagle News Service)
