By Dominique Gabriel G. Bañaga
Negros Occidental Provincial Consultant on Economic Affairs Alfredo Benitez revealed that the province will receive doses of Sinovac BioTech’s coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccines which were part of China’s donation to the Philippine government.
Benitez said that part of the vaccines will be given to the Teresita Lopez Jalandoni Provincial Hospital in Silay City. Inoculation of the hospital’s healthcare workers is expected tomorrow.
The former congressman added that a list of the medical personnel from the said provincial hospital and other capitol-run hospitals have been submitted to the Department of Health Region 6 (DOH-6).
The number of doses that would be given to the province will depend on the number of frontliners who have signified their willingness to be vaccinated, he added.
Earlier, the provincial government has asked the national government for COVID-19 vaccines which would be given to healthcare workers under the provincial government.
Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson said he made a call to the office of Senator Bong Go making a request for the vaccines, while Benitez contacted vaccine czar, Secretary Carlito Galvez, Jr., to see if the province could get a share of the AstraZeneca vaccines which recently arrived in the country.
Lacson believes that they will receive a limited supply of vaccines ranging between 5,000 to 6,000 doses, although he made an assurance that it would be enough for two doses and would vaccinate at least half of the province’s medical frontliners.
The provincial government currently has a total of 8,000 medical frontliners serving in various provincial-run hospitals and clinics in 31 local government units./DGB, WDJ