BACOLOD City – This city targets to vaccinate 68 percent of its population against coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).
Mayor Evelio Leonardia said the remaining 32 percent of the 424,992 Bacolodnons were 18-year-olds and below not included in the priority list.
The city government already made an initial payment of more than P31 million to British pharmaceutical firm AstraZeneca for the 650,000 doses of COVID-19 vaccine it ordered.
The vaccines’ expected arrival is by the third quarter of the year.
The city government has also identified 40 vaccination centers. Each center can have a daily maximum target of 500 vaccinated people, or an estimated 20,000 individuals a day, Leonardia said.
The mayor also highlighted the “strong public-private partnership” in the city, “evident in the several offers from private sectors and individuals.”
They want us to utilize their facilities as vaccination sites, Leonardia stressed.
Several medical schools and organizations said they would also augment the city’s vaccination manpower, he revealed.
Aside from AstraZeneca, Leonardia is also negotiating with other pharmaceutical companies for additional doses of COVID-19 vaccines.
Bacolod City is among the first local government units in the country to establish a vaccination council, the COVID-19 Vaccination Council created through Executive Order No. 83 issued by Leonardia on Dec. 22, 2020./PN