Belmonte, who got COVID twice, says “the best vaccine is the one readily available”
(Eagle News) – Quezon City mayor Joy Belmonte said she was just got her first COVID-19 vaccine shot on Monday, May 24. She said she got the Sinovac dose.
Belmonte, in a post at the Quezon City government’s Facebook page, explained that she booked for a vaccine shot through the EZConsult website so she would experience the whole process of enlistment herself, and thus, could make suggestions for its improvement.
The mayor said that she was just recovering from the COVID infection she got last month, and thus saw no reason to be vaccinated immediately.
“Today I joined the thousands of QCitizens who are now vaccinated against COVID-19. Although I am part of the A1 category, I decided to wait until most of those in the identified priority groups had been vaccinated,” she said.
“Like many other QCitizens, I booked my vaccination appointment through our EZConsult website, so I could observe the process for myself and make suggestions as to how this can be improved,” she said.
-More than 322,000 vaccine doses already given in QC-
“When I booked, EZConsult only had available slots at the vaccination site in Ateneo, and this is where I received my first dose of Sinovac at 1 pm this afternoon – the 322,056th dose administered in the city,” she said.
Belmonte encouraged more Quezon City residents to get vaccinated, having been infected with COVID twice.
“Dahil dalawang beses kong naranasang magka-COVID-19, batid ko ang kahalagahan ng bakuna upang maiwasan ang pagkakaroon ng malalang sakit na dulot ng virus,” she said.
“I hope that by having been vaccinated, I could encourage more QCitizens to get inoculated too against COVID-19.”
Belmonte repeated what other government officials have been saying, that the “best vaccine is the one readily available, the one that is in your arm.”
“Herd immunity cannot be achieved, if we all wait for a preferred vaccine brand based on a notion that it is of a higher quality or more prestigious. All the vaccines approved by the FDA (Food and Drug Administration) are equally safe and effective,” she said.
She also thanked all the Quezon City residents who had already enlisted to have the vaccine, and those who had already received the jab. She particularly commended the health care workers who had been tirelessly giving their service to put an end to the pandemic.
(Eagle News Service)
