Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, November 17) — The government aims to start giving additional COVID-19 shots to senior citizens and people with underlying illnesses before the month ends, vaccine czar Carlito Galvez Jr. said on Wednesday.
He said it could happen as early as next week or by Nov. 29 to coincide with the three-day national vaccination drive.
“Ang sinasabi natin sa seniors, maghintay lang ng kaunti, tinatapos lang ang protocols,” he said.
[Translation: We are asking the seniors to wait a little. We are just finalizing the protocols.]
The government is administering booster shots for healthcare workers beginning Wednesday, but there are no guidelines yet for giving additional doses for senior citizens and people with comorbidities.
Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said the guidelines for the A2 and A3 sectors will have “minor changes” compared to the rules observed for the vaccination of medical frontliners.
Booster shots are given to those whose immunity is going down over time after completing their shots. An additional dose is for individuals who never reached the ideal immune response level. They are usually the elderly and people with comorbidities.
Health Secretary Francisco Duque III, meanwhile, said the rest of the population will most likely receive their additional shots once the vulnerable sectors have received theirs.
“That will eventually happen. We are prioritizing healthcare workers, immunocompromised, and the seniors. After that we’ll implement this to the general population pero tapusin muna natin ang vulnerable groups [but let’s finish the vulnerable groups first],” he said.
