Monday, May 29, 2023
manilastandard.net
ADVERTISEMENT
  • About
  • News
    • Top Stories
    • National
    • World News
    • Pinoy Abroad
    • Features
  • Opinion
    • Editorial
    • Columns
    • Soundbytes
  • LGUs
    • NCR
    • Luzon
    • Visayas
    • Mindanao
  • Business
    • Corporate
    • Economy & Trade
    • Stocks
    • Money
    • Agri & Mining
    • Power & Tech
    • IT & Telecom
  • Sports
    • Basketball
    • Volleyball
    • Fightsports
    • Active
    • Sports Plus
    • One Championship
    • Columns
  • Entertainment
    • TV & Movies
    • Celebrity Profiles
    • Music & Concerts
    • Digital Media
    • Columns
  • Lifestyle
    • Food
    • Culture & Media
    • Fashion
    • Health and Home
    • Leisure
    • Shopping
    • Columns
  • Others
    • Pets
    • Pop.Life
      • Newsmakers
      • Hangouts
      • A-Pop
      • Post Its
      • Performances
      • Malls & Bazaars
      • Hobbies & Collections
    • Technology
      • Gadgets
      • Computers
      • Business
      • Tech Plus
    • MS ON THE ROAD
      • Sedan
      • SUV
      • Truck
      • Bike
      • Accessories
      • Motoring Plus
      • Commuter’s Corner
    • Home & Design
      • Residential
      • Commercial
      • Construction
      • Interior
    • Spotlight
    • Gallery
      • Photos
      • Videos
    • Events
      • Seminars
      • Exhibits
      • Community
    • Biyahero
      • Travel Features
      • Travel Reels
      • Travel Logs
  • Advertise with Us
No Result
View All Result
  • About
  • News
    • Top Stories
    • National
    • World News
    • Pinoy Abroad
    • Features
  • Opinion
    • Editorial
    • Columns
    • Soundbytes
  • LGUs
    • NCR
    • Luzon
    • Visayas
    • Mindanao
  • Business
    • Corporate
    • Economy & Trade
    • Stocks
    • Money
    • Agri & Mining
    • Power & Tech
    • IT & Telecom
  • Sports
    • Basketball
    • Volleyball
    • Fightsports
    • Active
    • Sports Plus
    • One Championship
    • Columns
  • Entertainment
    • TV & Movies
    • Celebrity Profiles
    • Music & Concerts
    • Digital Media
    • Columns
  • Lifestyle
    • Food
    • Culture & Media
    • Fashion
    • Health and Home
    • Leisure
    • Shopping
    • Columns
  • Others
    • Pets
    • Pop.Life
      • Newsmakers
      • Hangouts
      • A-Pop
      • Post Its
      • Performances
      • Malls & Bazaars
      • Hobbies & Collections
    • Technology
      • Gadgets
      • Computers
      • Business
      • Tech Plus
    • MS ON THE ROAD
      • Sedan
      • SUV
      • Truck
      • Bike
      • Accessories
      • Motoring Plus
      • Commuter’s Corner
    • Home & Design
      • Residential
      • Commercial
      • Construction
      • Interior
    • Spotlight
    • Gallery
      • Photos
      • Videos
    • Events
      • Seminars
      • Exhibits
      • Community
    • Biyahero
      • Travel Features
      • Travel Reels
      • Travel Logs
  • Advertise with Us
No Result
View All Result
manilastandard.net
No Result
View All Result
Home News Top Stories

Early vaccine payments OKd

Maricel CruzbyMaricel Cruz
November 20, 2020, 1:30 am
in Top Stories
Reading Time: 4 mins read
A A
Share on FacebookShare on TwitterShare on Email

President Rodrigo Duterte has approved the use of P2.5 billion to vaccinate some 22 million Filipinos against COVID-19 and is willing to make early payments to vaccine manufacturers to ensure that the country can get enough doses.

ANTI-VIRUS VACCINE. Pfizer Inc. and BioNTech could secure emergency U.S. and European authorization for their COVID-19 vaccine next month after final trial results showed it had a 95% success rate and no serious side effects, the drugmakers said. AFP

At a meeting of the House committee on people’s participation, Dr. Aleli Annie Grace Sudiacal from the Department of Health’s Bureau of International Health Cooperation said the President has approved the inclusion of P2.5 billion in the 2021 national budget for the purchase of vaccines through the COVID-19 Vaccines Global Access (Covax) facility.

Covax is a global sharing mechanism for pooled procurement and equitable distribution of COVID-19 vaccines once they are licensed and approved. The program, under the auspices of the World Health Organization (WHO), is expected to provide vaccination for 3 to 20 percent of the population or 3.2 million to 22 million Filipinos.

Sudiacal said the Philippines is eligible under the COVAX system because it is a low middle income country which signified its intention to be part of the system. However, the country needs to pay $1.60 to $2 per dose to be able to take part in it.

“As you all know we have RA 9184 or the Procurement Act which prohibits advance payment for something that is still not there. That is why we had to seek the intervention of the President and it’s very good news that the President has approved the use of the P2.5 billion allotted for the purchase of vaccines for the Philippines to have access to the COVAX facility,” she told the committee.

Under this setup, the country may get access for about 20 percent of the population once a vaccine or several vaccines become available. She said funding will come from the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank.

Sudiacal said the Inter-Agency Task Force on Covid-19 has already identified 12 priority vulnerable groups that will be given the vaccine based on the guidelines issued by the WHO.

These are frontline health workers, senior citizens, the poor and uniformed personnel. Other priorities are teachers and school workers from public and private institutions, government workers, essential workers in agriculture, the food industry, transportation and tourism, socio-demographic groups at significantly higher risk like prisoners, people with disability and Filipinos living in high-density areas, overseas Filipino workers, other workers and students.

Presidential spokesman Harry Roque, meanwhile, said the President has accepted the proposal of vaccine czar Carlito Galvez, Jr. to enter into advance market commitments with private foreign developers and provide advance payments to ensure the Philippines can secure vaccine doses once these are cleared for widespread use.

“We already agreed… because if we don’t agree to advance payments, we will be left out as other countries secure vaccines,” Roque said.

Duterte previously rejected the idea, but Roque said the President changed his mind upon seeing how other countries were handling the early procurement.

The President criticized pharmaceutical companies, particularly those from Western countries, for asking for advance payment for their COVID-19 vaccines that are still under development.

“If we need to sell government properties, he would do it,” Roque added.

Only recently, Duterte announced that the Philippine government might borrow $300 million (at least P14.5 billion) to purchase COVID-19 vaccines.

Duterte made the announcement after American pharmaceutical firm Pfizer and German partner BioNTech reported that their COVID-19 vaccine is 90 percent effective based on their analysis.

Roque said the President reaffirmed his promise to have all Filipinos vaccinated, with priority given to the poor.

The government has been pinning its hopes on a COVID-19 vaccine to end the pandemicm which has already afflicted more than 412,000 people nationwide.

The manufacturers of at least five potential COVID-19 vaccine products have expressed interest in conducting clinical trials in the Philippines, according to the Food and Drugs Administration (FDA).

In a press briefing Thursday, FDA Director General and Health Undersecretary Eric Domingo, cited the advantage of conducting clinical trials in the Philippines.

“Those who will conduct clinical trials here will have some advantages because we can really see what effect this vaccine will have on our situation and on the Filipinos themselves,” Domingo said in Filipino.

According to Domingo, one of these potential vaccines, Sinovac, has already been cleared by the vaccine expert panel of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) and is currently under evaluation by the FDA.

“There is one that has actually been endorsed by the DOST vaccine expert panel to the FDA. This is the one in Sinovac,” Domingo said.

In October, the DOST said the Sputnik V, Janssen, Sinovac, and COVAX-19 have expressed intent to undergo clinical trials in the Philippines.

Aside from these, Philippine Council for Health Research Development executive director Dr. Jaime Montoya noted that more vaccines will have their clinical trials in the country under the World Health Organization Solidarity Trial.

Senate President Pro Tempore Ralph Recto on Thursday said the proposed funding in the 2021 national budget would cover only 20 percent of Filipinos, based on the cheapest vaccine being developed.

Compounding the lack of funds are cold chain supply challenges and a purchasing agency which Recto describes as “auto-immune to efficient procurement.”

“So the entire process from budgeting, purchase, storage, delivery is fraught with challenges, but I am optimistic that we as a nation can pull it off,” Recto said.

Recto cited data provided by Senator Pia Cayetano, who said that based on the costing of the DOH, the cheapest vaccine, the one developed by AstraZeneca, will cost P610 per person and the most expensive is the one from Chinese Sinopharm, at around P17,690 per person for two doses.

But injecting the vaccine requires other costs, from personal protective equipment to cold chain equipment and vehicles, as the vaccine must be kept in sub-zero temperatures, Cayetano added.

Recto said Cayetano estimated that to vaccinate 24 million Filipinos would cost P22 billion—to cover the price of the vaccine, the supply chain expense, PPEs for health workers and post-vaccination surveillance.

Another challenge, Recto said, was the Philippine International Trading Corp., a Department of Trade and Industry-attached body that is the designated buyer of vaccines. The company’s track record in other government procurement programs has been less than inspiring, Recto said.

Vito Barcelo, Willie Casas

Tags: BioNTechCOVID-19 Vaccines Global AccessPfizerRodrigo DutertevaccineWorld Health Organization
ADVERTISEMENT
Maricel Cruz

Maricel Cruz

Related Posts

‘Betty’ slows, NCR on ‘Bravo’

byCharles Dantesand1 others
May 29, 2023, 2:05 am
0
8
Flag Day Rite

Luzon feels ‘habagat’ winds; Metro Manila at moderate risk for flooding STORM WATCH. An officer of the Philippine Coast Guard...

Read more

2 more priority bills set for approval this week, 33 out of 42 from LEDAC

byRio N. Araja
May 29, 2023, 1:55 am
0
8
Southwoods nails Seniors’ Fil golf crown

The House of Representatives is scheduled to approve on third and final reading this week two more bills tagged as...

Read more

1k flee Lanao town with terrorist threat

byCharles Dantes
May 29, 2023, 1:50 am
0
8
1k flee Lanao town with terrorist threat

FLEEING LANAO. This screen grab from an ABS-CBN TV report on Sunday shows some of the 1,236 persons from Marogong,...

Read more

Arroyo rejects rumor linking First Lady to House coup

byRio N. Araja
May 29, 2023, 1:45 am
0
8
SC upholds Arroyo acquittal in NBN-ZTE

Former President and Deputy Speaker Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo took exception to rumors dragging First Lady Liza Marcos-Araneta into a reported coup...

Read more

Solons to hasten Senate Maharlika bill

byRio N. Araja
May 29, 2023, 1:40 am
0
8
Salceda urges Labor, Migrant depts to lift ban on OFW

Albay Rep. Joey Salceda on Sunday said Congress is studying the Senate’s version of the Maharlika Investment Fund, which President...

Read more

Speaker praises Pier 88 opening in Cebu’s Liloan

byRio N. Araja
May 29, 2023, 1:35 am
0
8
Journalist, former UP CMC dean Luis Teodoro passes away at 81

Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez applauded the launch of Pier 88 in Liloan, Cebu, saying the enhanced mobility in the region...

Read more

Print Edition

View More

Recent Posts

  • Makati pilot site for DOT heritage tours
  • ‘Santacruzan’ symbolizes Catholic devotion to the Virgin Mary
  • Ex-Abra mayor told to surrender guns
  • BFAR execs urged to answer graft case
  • Oath taking
  • Troops in climate change advocacy
  • House approves several vital bills
  • Speaker salutes the soldiers for exemplary service to PH

Advertisement

Latest News

Troops in climate change advocacy

byNorman Cruz
May 29, 2023, 10:53 pm
0
8
Speaker salutes the soldiers for exemplary service to PH

Troops from the Philippine Army’s Armor Division under Maj. Gen. Facundo Palafox IV break ground to plant bamboo seedlings to...

Read more

House approves several vital bills

byMaricel Cruz
May 29, 2023, 10:50 pm
0
8
Speaker FMR inspires 19th Congress toward inclusive, swift legislative agenda

Congress approved on Monday several significant measures including one declaring the maritime zones of the Philippines in order to establish...

Read more

Speaker salutes the soldiers for exemplary service to PH

byMaricel Cruz
May 29, 2023, 10:40 pm
0
8
Speaker salutes the soldiers for exemplary service to PH

Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez on Monday extolled the men and women of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) as...

Read more

PCG says it can siphon remaining fuel from sunken tanker by June

byManila Standard
May 29, 2023, 10:30 pm
0
8
Sunken tanker no sail permit

The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) on Monday expressed confidence it could finish siphoning the oil from a sunken tanker off...

Read more

ARTA marks 5th year, eyes stronger fight vs. corruption

byVince Lopez
May 29, 2023, 10:20 pm
0
8
ARTA to prepare localized reporting on doing business

The Anti-Red Tape Authority (ARTA) on Monday observed its fifth year with renewed focus on expanding its coverage, modernizing its...

Read more

Advertisement

ADVERTISEMENT
Facebook Twitter Instagram Youtube

ABOUT US

Manila Standard

Manila Standard website (manilastandard.net), launched in August 2002, extends the newspaper’s reach beyond its traditional readers and makes its brand of Philippine news and opinion available to a much wider and geographically diverse readership here and overseas.

Digital Edition

In tone and content, the online edition mirrors the editorial thrust of the newspaper. While hewing to the traditional precepts of fairness and objectivity, MS believes the news of the day need not be staid, overly long or dry. Stories are succinct, readable and written in a lively style that has become a hallmark of the newspaper.

Download – Today’s Paper

Search

No Result
View All Result

6th Floor Universal Re Bldg., 106 Paseo De Roxas cor. Perea Street, Legaspi Village, 1226 Makati City Philippines

Trunklines: 832-5554, 832-5556, 832-5558

© 2021 Manila Standard - Designed and Developed by Neitiviti Studios.

No Result
View All Result
  • About
  • News
    • Top Stories
    • National
    • World News
    • Pinoy Abroad
    • Features
  • Opinion
    • Editorial
    • Columns
    • Soundbytes
  • LGUs
    • NCR
    • Luzon
    • Visayas
    • Mindanao
  • Business
    • Corporate
    • Economy & Trade
    • Stocks
    • Money
    • Agri & Mining
    • Power & Tech
    • IT & Telecom
  • Sports
    • Basketball
    • Volleyball
    • Fightsports
    • Active
    • Sports Plus
    • One Championship
    • Columns
  • Entertainment
    • TV & Movies
    • Celebrity Profiles
    • Music & Concerts
    • Digital Media
    • Columns
  • Lifestyle
    • Food
    • Culture & Media
    • Fashion
    • Health and Home
    • Leisure
    • Shopping
    • Columns
  • Pop.Life
    • Newsmakers
    • Hangouts
    • A-Pop
    • Post Its
    • Performances
    • Malls & Bazaars
    • Hobbies & Collections
  • Technology
    • Gadgets
    • Computers
    • Business
    • Tech Plus
  • MS ON THE ROAD
    • Sedan
    • SUV
    • Truck
    • Bike
    • Accessories
    • Motoring Plus
    • Commuter’s Corner
  • Home & Design
    • Residential
    • Commercial
    • Construction
    • Interior
  • Spotlight
  • Gallery
    • Photos
    • Videos
  • Events
    • Seminars
    • Exhibits
    • Community
  • Biyahero
    • Travel Features
    • Travel Reels
    • Travel Logs
  • Pets
  • Advertise with Us

© 2021 Manila Standard - Designed and Developed by Neitiviti Studios.

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In

Install Manila Standard Web App

Install App