Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, January 17) — The Philippine government will proceed with the procurement of bivalent vaccines against COVID-19 despite reports linking a specific brand to a type of adult stroke.
Department of Health officer-in-charge Maria Rosario Vergeire said such reports should be taken with a grain of salt, adding that even monovalent vaccines come with certain risks but those that ended up with adverse reactions are less than 1% of the total vaccinated population.
“Dito sa study na lumabas, yung totality does not really conclude na kapag ikaw ay binigyan ng bivalent (vaccine), talagang magkakaroon ka ng stroke,” explained Vergeire. “Ang sinabi lang the risk would be there and if we go back to previous vaccines, iyong monovalent, marami din naman ganitong reaksyon na naire-report.”
[Translation: In the study that came out, it does not really conclude that you will have a stroke if you are given the bivalent. It only says the risk would be there and if we go back to previous vaccines — the monovalent — a lot of these reactions are reported.]
The US CDC is looking into a possible safety concern in which people aged 65 and older were more likely to suffer from an ischemic stroke weeks after receiving Pfizer’s updated COVID-19 shot.
But Vergeire said this should not stop the country from getting its hands on vaccines that will increase Filipinos’ protection against severe disease.
“Of course, it is considered. We will monitor properly itong mga babakuhanan kung sakaling dumating na itong bivalent sa atin. Pero hindi ito dapat maging balakid para matanggap ng ating mga kababayan ang kinakailangan nilang bakuna para ma-prevent ang severe and critical complications of COVID-19,” Vergeire said.
[Translation: Of course, it is considered. We will monitor properly those who will be vaccinated once these bivalent vaccines arrive. But these should not be a hindrance for the public to get the necessary vaccines to prevent the severe and critical complications of COVID-19.]
Meanwhile, the DOH said COVID-19 shots are now available in 3,697 community healthcare centers.
“Noong nag-umpisa tayo mag-ramp up sa booster shots, marami na sa local governments natin ay nag-desisyon na kung saan they integrated their COVID-19 vaccination with their primary care facilities,” Vergeire said.
