Mayor Benjamin Magalong is pushing for no less than a 100 percent vaccination of eligible residents to achieve herd immunity.
He made the announcement via Zoom during the regular management committee meeting of city officials, April 6, at the City Hall multipurpose hall. The mayor is currently isolated at his residence after testing positive of the Covid-19 several days ago.
In his recent virtual meeting with World Health Organization representatives, Magalong said he was advised that the entire local populace must be vaccinated to achieve herd immunity and not the city’s earlier target of 70 to 80 percent.
“This being the case, we are currently gathering more vaccine donors to cover the remaining number of vaccinees to achieve full inoculation of the city’s eligible residents,” the mayor said.
During the meeting, City Health Services Office head Rowena Galpo gave an update of the city’s vaccination rollout where 10,561 out of the 11,553 priority A1 eligible population or 91.41 percent have been inoculated with the first dose as of April 6, the highest, by far, in the Cordillera.
Priority A1 is composed of government health workers and those from private clinics, diagnostic centers and barangay emergency response teams.
She said they started vaccinating persons with comorbidities (A3) several days ago but had to stop due to lack of vaccines. It will continue when vaccines arrive, she added.
Galpo said they had to jump to priority A3 from A2 (senior citizens) because vaccines for individuals 60 years old and above has not yet arrived.
Under the Department of Health’s Covid-19 prioritization plan, they are followed by frontline personnel in essential sectors including uniformed personnel (A4); indigent population at priority A5; teachers and social workers are priority B1; other government workers (B2); and other essential workers (B3);
Socio-demographic groups at significantly higher risk other than senior citizens and the poor (B4); overseas Filipino workers (B5); other remaining workforce (B6); and rest of the Filipino population not included in the aforementioned groups at priority C.
“The current vaccines reduce the risk of severe disease and death and are most suited for those with higher risk of exposure and death. The benefits of being vaccinated outweigh the risks of adverse effects if any,” Galpo said.
Vaccination sites are the Baguio General Hospital and Medical Center, SLU Hospital of the Sacred Heart, Baguio Medical Center, Pines City Doctors Hospital, Notre Dame De Chartres Hospital, and Philippine Military Academy Station Hospital.
The city’s field vaccination sites are the University of Baguio and SLU gymnasiums; Baguio City High School; and St. Louis Center (Campo Filipino). – Gaby B. Keith
