Mayor Jerry Treñas is planning to purchase more vaccines against the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) for residents of Iloilo City in a bid to achieve herd immunity.
“Providing immunity from COVID-19 for our residents is very important. We must prepare to immunize our residents in a long term goal,” said Treñas.
According to the mayor, US pharmaceutical giant Johnson & Johnson (J&J) has presented its proposal to the city government to provide additional vaccines for the city residents.
“They said that they could allocate the J&J vaccine on the third or fourth quarter of the year upon the approval of the National IATF (Inter-Agency Task Force),” said Treñas.
“The J&J vaccine’s effectiveness in preventing infections is 66% in its large global trial. It can be given in a single dose and stored in normal refrigerators that meant it will be easier to distribute to safeguard our fellow Ilonggos,” he further said.
The city government “will coordinate closely with the National IATF” to discuss the procurement process.
Last month, the city government sealed a deal with AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals Philippines Inc. for the advance purchase of COVID-19 vaccines.IMT
Photo by Reuters
