A FORMER presidential adviser hinted on the need to prioritize the vaccination of people living in the economic epicenters before moving on to other hotspots.
Health expert Dr. Anthony “Tony” Leachon, a former adviser to the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID) which is the government’s policy making body on COVID-19 response, said the National Capital Region or Metro Manila, Calabarzon and Central Luzon form 70% of the country’s economic epicenter.
“They said we can vaccinate in three to five years. I have a different suggestion. The initial volume of vaccines from AstraZeneca, Pfizer and Moderna should be focused on NCR which has a population of 13 million, Calabarzon and Central Luzon because these areas make up 70% of the economic epicenter of the country,” Leachon said in a television interview.
“Once we are okay with the 70% of our economic epicenter, then we should focus on other hotspots [of COVID-19] like Davao and Cebu,” Leachon added.
According to Leachon, the government stands to achieve its target in two years instead of five, as stated by vaccine czar and National Task Force Chief Secretary Carlito Galvez Jr., who hinted on being able to vaccinate 100 million Filipinos but on a staggered basis.
Interestingly, Galvez hinted on a timeline despite the fact that the country has no COVID-19 vaccines yet approved by Philippine regulators. Galvez appears to be capitalizing on the government-private sector deal with British firm AstraZeneca for an initial 2.6 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines.
Health Undersecretary Rosario Vergeire said in an earlier statement that the DOH will not be able to vaccinate 70% of Filipinos within a year mainly due to lack of COVID-19 vaccine supply.
For Leachon, a two-year timeline for vaccination will work if those residing in 70% of the economic epicenter will be prioritized.
“If we want to spread the vaccine thinly, surely it will take us three to five years. But if we want to be agile, we can finish in two years if we focus on the economic epicenter first. Economic recovery would need herd immunity, and the vaccination of 70% in these areas will enable them to return to normalcy and cause faster economic recovery,” Leachon said.
Only COVID-19 vaccines from American firms Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna, as well as British firm AstraZeneca in a joint effort with Oxford University, have been proven to be over 90% effective after human trials.
Vaccines developed by Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna, however, cost more. They also pose logistical challenges to low- and middle-income countries since they require ultra-low freezer or -70 degrees to -80 degrees Celsius temperature for storage.
The vaccine czar earlier said that more than 35 million Filipinos will be prioritized to receive vaccines against COVID-19, adding that the priority list of vaccine recipients came from the DOH and was created with the guidance of President Rodrigo Duterte.
Galvez’ strategy however is the extreme opposite of what Leachon wanted. The government is embarking on the vaccination that will start in areas that are most affected by the pandemic as well as those considered as business centers so the country will immediately feel its effect.
Areas Galvez identified include the NCR, Calabarzon, Central Luzon, Cebu, Davao, and Cagayan de Oro.