The Taguig City government said it tied up with Orca聮s Cold Chain Solutions to use its 6-500 square meter facility in Barangay Bagumbayan as cold storage for the Covid-19 vaccines it has bought from England-based biopharmaceutical company AstraZeneca. PHOTO FROM TAGUIG PIO
MANILA, Philippines 鈥� The readiness of Metro Manila cities to participate in the Covid-19 immunization program will be thoroughly checked as the arrival date of the initial batch of vaccines nears, the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) said on Tuesday.
MMDA General Manager Jojo Garcia said in a press conference on Tuesday night that the Metro Manila Council (MMC) met with national government officials to discuss plans for the vaccination program, especially since vaccine vials will require delicate handling and proper storage to ensure high efficacy.
Garcia added that government agencies like the Department of Health (DOH), the Inter-Agency Task Force on Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF), and the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) will be checking cold storage facilities to be used by the Metro local government units (LGUs) in storing the vaccines.
鈥淜anina nga po, napunta kami sa Pasig, kay Mayor Vico (Sotto), at pinakita niya 鈥榶ong kahandaan if ever dumating na itong mga vaccine.聽 At tomorrow may schedule sa Taguig, sa Makati, and then sa Manila meron din.聽 So lahat po ng LGUs sa NCR pupuntahan po 鈥榶an to check on the preparation,鈥� Garcia said.
鈥淲e鈥檙e also going to check kung papaano iha-handle, alam naman natin sensitive 鈥榶ong ating mga vacccine, may mga (required) temperature 鈥榶an, may mga freezer, so doon po tumakbo 鈥榶ong usapan.聽 At 鈥榶ong DILG nagbigay rin ng assurance na 鈥榶ong mga PNP personnel, BJMP, BFP, tutulong sa pag-manage,鈥� he added.
According to Garcia, Metro Manila mayors have already asked IATF chief implementer and vaccine czar Secretary Carlito Galvez Jr., on the date of the vaccines鈥� arrival.
Galvez reportedly replied that the first batch of the vaccines will arrive between the end of February or in early March.
鈥淎ng mga mayors natin of course ang concern sa una, may tatlong questions sila palagi eh.聽 Ang una, kailan darating for them to prepare, hindi biro 鈥榶an.聽 Number two, gaano kadami, number three, anong brand.聽 Kasi 鈥榶ong brand importante 鈥榶an may kanya-kanyang temperature bawat brand,鈥� the MMDA official said.
鈥淪o kailangan paghandaan talaga 鈥榶an, ayaw nating mapanisan ng bakuna, sayang.聽 At ang pagkasabi ni Secretary Galvez, of course, actually napaka-swerte natin kung may darating na ngayong February or March, first quarter meron na tayo,鈥� he explained.
Metro Manila and other major areas and cities in the country are expected to receive the first batch of vaccines especially as the National Capital Region (NCR) remains to be the virus epicenter in the country.
Data from the DOH COVID-19 tracker website showed that almost half of the total confirmed cases in the Philippines 鈥� 219,935 of the 516,166 cases 鈥� are in the NCR.聽 In terms of active cases, more than one-fourth of the country鈥檚 patients or 7,961 of the 30,357 are in Metro Manila.
READ: PH鈥檚 Covid-19 cases climb to 516,166 with 1,173 new cases
Garcia also noted that healthcare workers, whether from private or public hospitals, would be prioritized for the vaccine.
鈥淎ng uunahin, because first quarter unti-unti ang dating ng bakuna eh, hindi naman biglaan na bultuhan milyon-milyon agad 鈥榶an [鈥 kaya ang bibigyan ng priority is really 鈥榶ong health workers, mapa-private, mapa-public government hospital, military hospital, lahat ng health workers 鈥榶an po ang uunahin,鈥� he assured.
鈥淎t 鈥榶ong mga magbabakuna, 鈥榶an po para hindi sila mahawa.聽 That鈥檚 why ang ating mga local government units pinagpe-prepare para sa ganyang mga gagamitin para maging successful ang pagbabakuna,鈥� he added.