THE Department of Health (DOH) on Friday, November 19, 2021, reminded the public that only healthcare workers (HCWs) are eligible to receive booster shots in the country and not any other sectors.
In a virtual press briefing, Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said other sectors are not yet qualified to receive booster doses.
"The Department of Health would like to remind the public that the general population is not yet eligible for booster vaccination," Vergeire said.
"The decision to offer booster doses to healthcare workers is in accordance with the emergency use authorization issued and is based on science and evidence," she added.
The health official said the only ones that are close to being made eligible for booster shots are senior citizens and people with comorbidities, particularly those that are immunocompromised.
This, she said, as the DOH's all-experts group is already drafting the guidelines for the provision of booster shots to Priority Groups A2 (senior citizens) and A3 (people with comorbidities).
"We will be announcing when will we start the booster shots for senior citizens," said Vergeire.
"Immunocompromised individuals must have either of the following conditions: autoimmune disease, human immunodeficiency virus, cancer/malignancy, transplant patients, those undergoing steroid treatment, and patients with poor prognosis/bed-ridden patients," said Vergeire.
On Wednesday, the DOH started giving booster shots to fully vaccinated healthcare workers.
Of the 1.6 million total healthcare workers, the DOH said about 600,000 are eligible to get booster shots in November.
In only the first day of giving booster shots, Vergeire said they have reached 2,488 healthcare workers.
She said about two percent of those who received booster shots experienced adverse effects following immunization.
"All were mild reactions, such as pain in the vaccination site, fever, headache, and high blood pressure," she said.
"All cases were managed accordingly and they were all sent home when they were well," added Vergeire.
A booster shot is given to people whose immune response may have weakened over time.