MALACAÑANG is not keen on the recommendation of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and has instead agreed to adopt vaccine czar Carlito Galvez’s proposal to administer Sinovac vaccines to Filipino elderlies.
“We are supportive of Secretary Galvez’s suggestion. Napakaraming bansa na po ang gumamit ng Sinovac sa senior citizens,” presidential spokesperson Harry Roque said in a press briefing.
Interestingly, Roque’s statement runs counter with that of the FDA, which earlier granted emergency use authorization (EUA) to Sinovac’s vaccine CoronaVac only for clinically healthy individuals aged 18 to 59 years old.
As such, Roque urged the FDA to infuse additional data to change its previous recommendation.
“Steps will be taken on this suggestion. The local representative of Sinovac will present additional data to FDA para mabago iyong EUA,” he said.
The FDA granted EUA on Sinovac last February 23, but it did not recommend it for health workers since its efficacy rate only reached 50.4% in that group.
The Department of Health ultimately allowed administration of Sinovac on healthcare workers, arguing that such vaccine prevents moderate and severe COVID-19 symptoms at 78% and 100%, respectively.
The Philippines officially started its COVID-19 vaccination program on March 1 using the Sinovac doses donated by the Chinese government.
As this developed, Roque said that members of the government’s COVID-19 task force will meet today to discuss several matters, including the vaccine rollout and the ban on entry of foreign nationals.
Among the agenda up for discussion include:
· Priority group A4 of the national COVID-19 vaccine deployment plan
· Imposition of temporary travel ban on all foreign nationals requesting entry to the Philippines
· Issues relative to StaySafe.ph
· Observations of the Metro Manila Council on the required COVID-19 ward allocation in government hospitals
· Request for overseas Filipino workers bound for high-risk countries to be vaccinated prior to deployment