THE bivalent Covid-19 vaccine or third booster will be rolled out in Davao City beginning Friday, June 30.
This was announced by the Davao City Health Office (CHO) on Thursday, June 29.
The bivalent vaccine will be rolled out at the District Health Offices and the People's Park.
The vaccine will be given to individuals who got their second booster shot in the past four months and above, under the category of A1 (health workers), 18 years old and above, and A2 (senior citizens).
The schedule of vaccination at the People's Park is from Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 3 p.m., while at the District Health Offices, it will only be on Fridays, still from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.
CHO health information education officer Daryl Guevarra, in an interview, said bivalent Covid-19 vaccines consist of two components: one targeting the original virus strain to offer broad protection against Covid-19, and the other targeting the omicron variant for enhanced protection against Covid-19 caused by this specific variant.
She said vulnerable sectors aged 18 and above, including healthcare workers, senior citizens, and persons with comorbidities, will be prioritized in the bivalent vaccine rollout as they are the ones most susceptible to Covid-19.
But Guevarra said only those with the first and second booster doses can avail of the third booster bivalent vaccine jab regardless of what their first boosters were.
She underscored that the bivalent vaccine is enhanced to fight the ever-evolving virus.
“Ang Covid-19 virus naa pa gihapon, wala pa mawala. Ga-circulate pa gihapon, mag-evolve ra na sya. Pahimangno nato sa mga Dabawenyo nga to observe minimum public health standards (The Covid-19 virus is still there, it’s not gone. It is still circulating, and it will evolve. We’re advising Dabawenyos to observe minimum public health standards),” the city health official said, adding that a lot of diseases could be prevented by frequent handwashing or using alcohol and wearing face masks.
The temporary side effects of getting a Covid-19 vaccine shot, according to her, far outweigh the benefits one can gain. An immunized individual may experience headache or fever only for a short term and can be remedied with medicines, but the protection from contracting severe Covid-19 symptoms lasts longer. WITH REPORTS FROM CIO