Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, July 12) — The country is set to receive next week its first shipment of single-dose COVID-19 vaccines from United States-based firm Johnson & Johnson, a health official said on Monday.
Health Undersecretary Myrna Cabotaje said 3.2 million Janssen doses donated by the US government through the COVAX program co-led by the World Health Organization will arrive on July 19.
This is the first batch of single-dose vaccines to be delivered to the Philippines.
Cabotaje said senior citizens and adults with comorbidities, or the so-called A2 and A3 groups, will be prioritized. Citing the directive from vaccine czar Carlito Galvez, Jr., she said each region will get 100,000 doses.
“Tapos ‘yung diperensya, dadagdagan natin based on the number of still to be vaccinated A2 and A3,” she said.
[Translation: The remaining supply for A2 and A3 will be augmented based on the number of those who have yet to be vaccinated.]
The Philippines is also expecting on July 19 around 562,000 Pfizer shots, followed by another 375,000 from the same brand on July 26, the official said. Six million more Sinovac doses are also slated to arrive in batches.
Based on official data, 13.1 million doses have so far been administered nationwide. Some 9.6 million people have received at least one shot, while 3.5 million have already been given two.
