(Eagle News) – Some 362,700 doses of Pfizer vaccines were delivered on Wednesday night, Aug. 26, bringing to almost 5 million the total number of Pfizer doses in the country.
The latest batch of government-procured Pfizer vaccines will benefit Metro Manila, Cebu, Davao and other areas with high COVID-19 cases.
“From this shipment, both Cebu and Davao will receive 50,310 doses each while the remaining 262,080 doses will be brought to PharmaServ Express’ cold-chain facility in Marikina City before being deployed to the NCR (National Capital Region),” the National Task Force against COVID-19 said in a statement.
The NTF said that these vaccines will be delivered to areas with high COVID-19 cases.
“Aside from NCR, andyan naman ‘yung Region 4 at other areas, at the same time, the capacity of the LGU also to hold the vaccine considering that this is really a sensitive one,” said Assistant Secretary Wilben Mayor of the Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process.
The Food and Drug Administration has coordinated with Pfizer regarding its application for the full authorization of its vaccine, he added.
A total of 4,951,440 procured and donated doses of Pfizer vaccines have so far been delivered to the country. As of August 25, a total of 48,885,590 doses of COVID-19 vaccines have arrived in the country.
Among those who witnessed the arrival of this latest batch of Pfizer vaccines were NTF special adviser Dr. Teodoro Herbosa, Department of Health Director Ariel Valencia, and US Embassy Counselor for Economic Affairs David ‘Chip’ Gamble.
Pfizer doses need to be stored in ultra-cold temperatures of -70 degrees Celsius.
The Philippines is racing to have population protection in Metro Manila by end of August, which is by vaccinating at least 50 percent of the eligible population. It also hopes to achieve herd immunity by year-end, aiming to vaccinate at least 70 percent of the entire population.
The COVID-19 Delta variant is, however, a game-changer since it is more aggressive and can infect up to eight times more people than the original COVID-19 variant. Both non-vaccinated and fully vaccinated people can get infected with the Delta variant. But those who had vaccines against COVID-19 are protected from having the severe form of the disease.
The government is thus encouraging more of the population to get vaccinated as a protection from being hospitalized, or dying from COVID.
(Eagle News Service)
