THE National Task Force Against Covid-19 has identified the priority provinces for the government’s vaccination program based on “economic and social importance,” chief implementer and vaccine czar Carlito Galvez Jr. said.

These are:

Luzon

· Metro Manila cities

· Calabarzon

· Central Luzon

· Baguio City

· Cordillera Administrative Region

· Cagayan Valley

Visayas

· Cebu City

· Bacolod City

· Iloilo City

· Central Visayas

· Western Visayas

· Eastern Visayas

Mindanao

· Davao City

· Cagayan de Oro City

· Zamboanga City

· General Santos City

· Iligan City

· Davao Region

· Zamboanga Peninsula

· Northern Mindanao

As of May, the country has received a total of 4,040,600 doses of vaccines against coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19).

These included 3.5 million doses from Sinovac, 525,600 AstraZeneca doses from Covax and 15,000 Sputnik V doses from Russia’s Gamaleya National Center of Epidemiology and Microbiology.

Galvez said the country needs 15 million doses per month to inoculate 70 percent of the population and achieve herd immunity before the end of the year.

“And nakikita po natin na papataas din po ‘yong ating mga deliveries. Starting po ng --- ng June, magkakaroon na po tayo ng more or less 10.3 million doses dahil po darating na rin po ang Moderna at saka po ‘yong AstraZeneca,” he said. (SunStar Philippines)