MANILA, Philippines – The road to herd immunity is projected to be short, with the inoculation of around 70 percent of the population targeted to be accomplished before the year ends, signaled a “Better Christmas” for Filipinos.
In a statement by Vaccine Czar Secretary Carlito Galvez Jr. during the virtual launch of the “Ingat Angat Bakuna Lahat” a private sector-led campaign, he said: “Vaccines will be the key to eliminate the COVID crisis. Vaccines are not coming in trickles, and are now coming in volumes.”
In his statement, Sec. Galvez said “herd containment’ will take place by September this year with a targeted inoculation of 25 million to 50 million Filipinos. By November, the country will reach its benchmark for herd immunity with 58 million to 70 million of the population receiving full doses.
Furthermore, he said, “with 110 million vaccinated, we will have the elimination of the disease by the second quarter of 2022.” In the same statement, he mentioned that the government’s vaccination targets are meant to provide a “better Christmas” for Filipinos.
At the time of his presentation, Sec. Galvez said about 7.8 million vaccines against COVID-19 have arrived, with an additional boost from the procurement of 40 million doses of Pfizer-BioNTech.
Additional Report: Armin P. Adina, Inquirer.net
Photo Courtesy: Culture Trip, The Manila Times, PNA
