Amid the rise in COVID-19 infections in the country, vaccination is not mandatory and supposed to be a personal decision, Malacanang said Monday.
Presidential spokesperson Harry Roque said that while the state had the authority to require people to get vaccinated against COVID-19, there was no need to make vaccination mandatory because there was not enough vaccine supply in the country.
The Philippines targets vaccinating 50 million to 70 million Filipinos to achieve herd immunity and jumpstart economic recovery.
According to Roque, compelling the people to get vaccinated was within the police power of the State but not yet needed since the country lacked vaccines to stop the COVID 19 which had claimed more than 16,000 lives.
Roque’s statement came after Cavite Rep. Elpidio Bargaza filed a bill requiring individuals to be vaccinated against COVID-19 to address vaccine distrust in the country.
He stressed the need to enact a general law protecting all vaccinated individuals against those who will refuse to receive the coronavirus disease 2019 vaccines pursuant to the general welfare clause of the 1987 Constitution.
“The State is mandated to make rules and regulations to protect the lives of the majority of its citizens”, arguing that a person who is not vaccinated is “a risk to the lives of others and to the general community”, the lawmaker said.
However, Roque said that President Rodrigo Duterte had no stand yet on the proposed measure, saying vaccine confidence was rising among the public but the supply of vaccines was not enough.
Herd immunity
Bargaza Jr., in his House Bill 9252, seeks to amend Republic Act 11525, or the Covid-19 Vaccination Program Act of 2021, as the present law should be made mandatory to persons who are eligible to get the COVID-19 vaccination as determined by the DOH and “safely achieve herd immunity.”.
In his bill, Barzaga said that in the Philippines, the hesitancy to be vaccinated remained high based on surveys.
To address the hesitancy, Barzaga said there was a need to enact legislation “to mandate and promote COVID-19 vaccination” and “instill public confidence in the personal, family and community benefits of immunization.”
“It will be tragic if we have safe and effective vaccines available but people who are eligible to get the vaccination as determined by the DOH,” said Barzaga, president of the National Unity Party.
‘Not mandatory’
The Department of Health said the benefits of COVID-19 vaccines still outweigh risks, even as the Philippine government had no plan to mandate citizens to get vaccinated against the disease.
During an online briefing, Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said government officials decided to make COVID-19 vaccination voluntary based on the recommendation of the World Health Organization.
The COVID-19 vaccines that have been rolled out or approved by regulatory agencies in the Philippines are still under an emergency use authorization, which is issued for drugs and vaccines during a public health emergency.
The Philippines has inoculated only over 1.3 million individuals as of April 20, with a plan to inoculate 70 million to attain herd immunity.
Home care kits
The Department of Health is currently working on home care kits for COVID-19 patients after orders from the Office of the President were made, Vergeire said.
Vergeire said the kit would contain “basics” like vitamins and paracetamol as well as instructions on how to seek medical consultation through telemedicine platforms.
Vergeire said the DOH is working with the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) on financing the kits.
“It’s going to be linked to our financing mechanism through our social health insurance, that’s why
it’s taking a while but the order was for us to implement this immediately, so we are just working on the financing mechanism,” Vergeire said.
A fresh surge in COVID-19 cases in Metro Manila and neighboring provinces has overwhelmed the healthcare system in the capital region, forcing patients to turn to home care or telemedicine services.
New evidence
The Philippine government must implement new guidelines in preventing COVID-19 transmission amid more evidence that the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is airborne, a neurosurgeon said.
A team of American, British, and Canadian scientists said they have found new evidence of how the COVID-19 virus can infect people by remaining airborne, according to a study published in scientific journal The Lancet.
The team said that long-range transmission of SARS-CoV-2 between people in adjacent rooms but never in each other’s presence had been documented in quarantine hotels.
The Department of Health, however, said current safety protocols were sufficient to deal with the spread of more infectious variants of the virus.
High quality
Air must flow naturally in transportation vehicles and electric fans are preferable than aircons without HEPA filters or those that only recycle air within a room, Dr. Ronnie Baticulon told ABS-CBN’s Teleradyo.
The public is also urged to wear high-quality or medical face masks securely so as to prevent air flowing inside, he said.
They are also advised against gathering, overcrowding, and remaining in an enclosed space for too long, he added.
Observing proper ventilation may also prevent the spread of tuberculosis, which is among the “top 10 killers” of Filipinos, according to Baticulon.
