GENERAL SANTOS CITY – The Department of Health (DOH) in Region 12 (Soccksargen) delivered on Friday an additional 7,500 doses of coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) vaccines for this city and South Cotabato to facilitate the expansion of the ongoing mass vaccination.
The City Health Office (CHO) received before noon a total of 2,750 vials of the Sinovac’s CoronaVac vaccine while the Integrated Provincial Health Office (IPHO) of South Cotabato got 4,750 doses.
Dr. April Mae Maquilang, CHO national immunization program coordinator, said the vaccines are intended for the second dose of the individuals under priority groups A1 (front-line health care workers), A2 (senior citizens), and A3 (persons with comorbidities).
She said the new doses will cover those who received their first dose of the CoronaVac in the first week of June.
Maquilang said they expect the delivery of more vaccines in the coming weeks to complete the vaccination of eligible residents under the first three categories.
She said they are continuously preparing for the vaccination of essential workers in government and private sectors or under the A4 priority group.
“The master listing for A4 is ongoing and we’re currently waiting for the vaccine allocation from the DOH,” she told reporters.
Dr. Carl Florida, spokesperson of the City Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging and Re-emerging Infectious Diseases, urged eligible residents to register with the rural health units or through the local government’s vaccination portal.
He reiterated that it is important for the city to maximize the inoculation coverage to protect more people from Covid-19.
The vaccines can protect residents from getting severe and critical Covid-19, especially amid the emergence of the highly contagious variants, he said.
“The efficacy of the vaccines could go down with some variants but it will protect us from severe cases,” he said.
In South Cotabato, the IPHO said it immediately dispatched the delivered vaccines to Koronadal City and the 10 other municipalities.
Koronadal City and Polomolok, the most populous localities in the province, received 1,650 and 756 doses, respectively.
Banga town got 325, followed by Surallah with 293, Tupi with 269, Norala with 265, Lake Sebu with 245, Tboli with 238, Tantangan with 215, Sto. Nino with 213, and Tampakan with 195.
Some 86 doses were allotted for personnel and inmates of the South Cotabato Rehabilitation and Detention Center or provincial jail who received their first doses last June 19. (PNA)
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