A MEMBER of government’s Vaccine Experts Panel yesterday called for a review of rules on booster shots for health workers who received the Chinese-made Sinovac COVID-19 vaccines amid reports of its waning effect and protection after six months.
Dr. Rontgene Solante, an infectious diseases specialist, said data “consistently” showed “waning immunity” of the vaccine from Sinovac Biotech after six months, and a booster is needed to keep protected the health workers who received that vaccine brand.
The government prefers to fully vaccinate Filipinos first before it starts administering booster shots. It hopes to achieve population protection or inoculate 50 percent of the eligible population by November in Metro Manila and eight other areas, and herd immunity or 70 percent of the population by December.
A P45-billion budget for the procurement of booster shots has been included in the proposed 2022 budget. Vaccine czar Carlito Galvez Jr. Has said the government may start administering booster shots in the first quarter of 2022.
As of August 25, 31.43 million doses of vaccines have been administered nationwide, with 13.37 million Filipinos fully vaccinated.
Solante, in an interview with ANC, said that based on his observations on three government hospitals he worked with, there have been breakthrough infections among those fully vaccinated healthcare workers but they are only mild cases.
He said this, however, could affect the healthcare services sector.
“I think we need to revisit again if we are going to need another dose or a third dose of Sinovac, although most of those fully vaccinated only have mild symptoms. But if you are a health worker and you have mild symptoms, you have to undergo a 14-day isolation. That can affect the performance and the way we deliver the healthcare in our hospitals,” Solante said.
Solante said based on recent data and studies, the inactivated vaccine from Sinovac may be able to decrease the severity of COVID-19 but it “may not be strong enough” to protect recipients from the new variants.
He added that health workers are especially at higher risk to infection because they are constantly exposed to COVID-19 patients.
“We need to revisit giving boosters, especially the health workers who are really always exposed and the risk of getting the infection is always there. Even if you’re vaccinated, with constant exposure, obviously your antibody weighs down and you will also get the infection,” he said.
Bureau of Quarantine deputy director Roberto Salvador asked Filipinos and foreigners coming to the country to use the OneHealthPass system which automates all processes for travelers, from their medical declaration up to their quarantine.
Salvador, during the “Laging Handa” public briefing, said travelers can log their personal and flight details at the OneHealthPass website, fill up their health declaration, and receive a QR code which will be scanned by authorities upon arrival in the Philippines.
The travelers will still be required to attend orientation, get immigration clearance, and stay at a quarantine facility or accredited hotel to undergo the mandatory quarantine, but the advance online registration would make it easier for authorities to get the information about the travelers and cut the arrival processing time by 30 minutes form one hour.
Once the COVID-19 test result and quarantine certificate are issued to the travelers, the OneHealthPass system will notify the local government of their destination that travelers have been cleared.
The use of the OneHealthPass system will be in a trial run for two weeks.
At least 23,060 of about 120,000 inmates or persons deprived of liberty (PDLs) have so far been vaccinated, according to the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology.
In an online press briefing, BJMP spokesman Chief Insp. Xavier Solda said 16,380 PDLs have received the first dose while 4,259 have received the second dose. Solda said 6,680 PDLs were inoculated with the one-dose vaccine.
“So our fully-vaccinated PDLs is at 10,939,” Solda said.
“So the number of PDLs who are yet to be vaccinated is still quite big,” Solda, said noting there are 121,895 PLDs confined in 140 BJMP jails throughout the country.
Solda said BJMP is dependent on the National Vaccination Operation Center of the Department of Health when it comes to the vaccination of the PDLs, thus he said local government units (LGUs) have a big role to play to inoculate all PDLs.
At the Bocaue municipal jail in Bulacan and Bataan District Jail, Solda said, all inmates are “100 percent vaccinated and that is through the efforts of their local government units.”
“If our LGUs will not forget their (constituents) who are inside district, city and municipal jails, that is going to be big for the BJMP,” Solda also said.
He appealed to local government units “not to forget their (constituents) who are inside the facilities of the BJMP.”
Solda said there are 4,235 COVID-19 cases among PDLs with 99 are active cases and 41 deaths.
Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra said jail authorities must coordinate with LGUs where jails and prisons are located to ensure that PDLs will get the vaccine.
Manila Mayor Isko Moreno, after surviving a bout with COVID-19, reported back to work yesterday and urged the public to get vaccinated as soon as possible.
Moreno said he and Vice Mayor Honey Lacuna have been inoculated but still contracted the coronavirus.
“Get yourself protected. I, your mayor, with the vice mayor and the city council, we can only do so much. The rest is up to you, the decision that you’re going to make is all to you, to your families, friends and community. One thing we can assure you is that despite the challenges, we will not be defeated by COVID-19,” he said. — With Victor Reyes and Ashzel Hachero
