ILOILO City – This southern city will start vaccinating against coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) its elderly and immunocompromised residents this week.
Mayor Jerry Treñas said these residents belonged to the next priority group identified by the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases.
About 900 jabs of the China-made CoronaVac vaccine will be used – half of these for senior citizens and the remaining for the immunocompromised.
“If there is a clearance from their own doctors, we will send our vaccinators to the houses of our bedridden seniors and immunocompromised residents,” said Treñas.
But they must be pre-registered, he stressed.
Data from the Iloilo City Health Office showed the city having 31,900 senior citizens eligible under the A2 population which entail 61,120 doses of AstraZeneca and 16,065 individuals below 60 years old with co-morbidities falling under A3 Priority Group entailing 32,130 doses of CoronaVac.
The city will also continue its immunization for the remaining healthcare workers not yet vaccinated.
Treñas said 1,000 more health workers will be inoculated starting this week and in the coming weeks until all of them are covered.
So far, 610 health workers in the city have completed their first and second doses of CoronaVac vaccines.
The city mayor previously noted that there are still more than 6,000 healthcare personnel under A1 priority group who have yet to receive the anti-coronavirus shots.
“Hopefully, we will get more vaccines. Sige man akon lobby for more vaccines,” the city mayor added.
Treñas further noted that the AstraZeneca vaccines the city earlier purchased will arrive by July.
Meanwhile, on Friday, Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque announced that the Inter-Agency Task Force approved the inclusion of more sectors to be prioritized for vaccination as economic frontliners under the A4 priority group.
These are frontline workers in commuter transport, wet and dry markets, food service, news media, education, specific government agencies, and overseas workers.
The A4 group will be vaccinated after the inoculation of senior citizens and people with co-morbidities./PN
