A TOTAL of 114,615 Filipinos were vaccinated against the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) from March 1 to 10, the Department of Health (DOH) said on Friday, March 12, 2021.
The number constitutes around 6.5 percent of the targeted 1.76 million healthcare workers nationwide. It also represents around 11 percent of the over one million healthcare workers who are on the master list of vaccine recipients.
Nearly nine out of 10, or 101,827, were inoculated with the CoronaVac (Sinovac vaccine) while 11 percent, or 12,788, received the AstraZeneca (AZ) vaccine.
DOH Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said the top three regions in terms of CoronaVac vaccinations are the National Capital Region (NCR), which received 40.7 percent of the vaccines, followed by the Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR) with 13.9 percent and Soccsksargen with 11.7 percent.
Vergeire said the AZ vaccine was used in the NCR, CAR, Ilocos and Calabarzon.
As of March 9, Vergeire said 21 people had experienced “serious” adverse events and 957 complained of mild effects following inoculation (AEFI).
Of the 21 cases with serious AEFI, 20 received CoronaVac and one was administered with AZ.
“‘Yung iba ay nahirapan huminga, ‘yung iba ay sumakit ang dibdib. Ito po ay kino-consider nating serious at pinag-aaralan po kung ano ang causality nito,” Vergeire said in a virtual briefing.
However, she said the National AEFI Committee said the serious adverse event may not be directly due to the vaccine, but may have been caused by anxiety and fear of inoculation.
Of those who experienced mild adverse events, 872 were vaccinated with CoronaVac and 85 received the AZ vaccine.
Considered mild adverse events are muscle pain at the injection site and other parts of the body, fever, high blood pressure and rashes.
Vergeire reiterated that the mild effects are common after vaccination.
The Philippines has received more than 1.1 million doses of donated vaccines - 600,000 from Sinovac which were donated by China and 525,600 from AZ which were donated through the Covax facility.
Under the prioritization framework of the government’s three-year Covid-19 vaccination program, the right of first refusal is given to the targeted 1.76 million healthcare workers nationwide.
Priority Group A also includes 3.78 million indigent senior citizens, 5.67 million other senior citizens, 12.91 million indigent population, and 525,523 uniformed personnel of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), Philippine National Police (PNP), Philippine Coast Guard, Bureau of Fire Protection and Cafgu.
Only after those in the first priority group will the following in Priority Group B be vaccinated, in this order: teachers; social workers; government workers; essential workers outside health, education, social welfare sectors including agriculture, food industry, transportation, tourism, manufacturing and construction, among others; special groups such as persons deprived of liberty, persons with disability and those living in high density areas; overseas Filipino workers and other remaining workforce.
The rest of the Philippine population will make up Group C, who will receive the vaccine last. (Third Anne Peralta-Malonzo / SunStar Philippines)