By Dominique Gabriel G. Bañaga

Negros Occidental Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson yesterday said they have yet to receive advice from the national government as to when they will receive their next allocated shipment of COVID-19 vaccines.

After the arrival of the CoronaVac vaccines from Chinese biotech Sinovac last May 1, Lacson said they have no idea as to how many of the two million doses of AstraZeneca vaccines that arrived in the country last Saturday, May 8, will be given to the province.

Vaccine czar Carlito Galvez, Jr. on Saturday said the vaccines will be distributed nationwide once the doses are accounted for.

It is very likely that Negros Occidental, especially Bacolod City, will receive a shipment of AstraZeneca vaccines after the OCTA Research Group tagged the city as an area of concern for COVID-19.

The AstraZeneca vaccines, meanwhile, are expected to be used for individuals under the A1 to A3 priority groups, as well as for the second dose of those who have already been inoculated earlier./DGB, WDJ