Earlier today, presidential spokesman Harry Roque stated in a Palace briefing that President Rodrigo Duterte will have his regular “Talk to the People” after attending the turnover ceremony for the one million doses of COVID-19 vaccines from Sinovac Biotech Ltd.
Today’s delivery is the first batch of CoronaVac out of 25 million doses purchased by the national government from the Chinese biopharmaceutical company which is said to be used for the country’s healthcare workers and frontliners.
TINGNAN: Nasa 1 milyong doses ng CoronaVac COVID-19 vaccine ang dumating dito sa bansa ngayong araw. Ito ang unang bugso…
Posted by Presidential Communications (Government of the Philippines) on Monday, March 29, 2021
The financial aid for those affected by the implemented week-long enhanced community quarantine or ECQ (March 29 to April 4) due to the recent surge of cases was said to be discussed, as well as its extension until the end of April.
Inaasahan natin na sa Talk to the People, masasapinal na ‘yung quarantine classification simula April 5 hanggang katapusan sa Abril at saka ‘yung issue ng assistance sa gobyerno. – presidential spokesman Harry Roque
COVID-19 Vaccine Rollout Plan
In his statement tonight, the President says that the next batch of CoronaVac will be received by April (1.5 million) and another in May (2 million). Secretary Carlito G. Galvez Jr. emphasizes that they are targeting a complete elimination of the COVID-19 disease, the reason why they have been communicating with other manufacturers who are also developing booster vaccines that can also eliminate the virus’s variants.
Since March 1, Galvez reports that 39% of the frontline workers in health facilities both national and local, private and public, health professionals and non-professionals like students, nursing aides, janitors, barangay health workers, etc. (A1) have already been vaccinated.
Senior citizens (A2) and people with comorbidities (A3) are next in line and are projected to start being vaccinated by April 1, while the frontline personnel in essential sectors including uniformed personnel and those in working sectors identified by the IATF as essential during ECQ (A4) and the indigent population (A5) shall be able to begin receiving theirs by May.
The rollout of the vaccine has also been reported to then be simultaneously given to teachers, social workers (B1), other government workers (B2), other essential workers (B3), socio-demographic groups at significantly higher risk other than senior citizens and indigenous people (B4), overseas Filipino workers (B5), other remaining workforce (B6), and the rest of the Filipino population (B7) afterward and is hoped to be accomplished by the end of the year.
ALSO READ: Where to Register for COVID-19 Vaccination in Metro Manila
Social Amelioration Program Allocation
According to Department of Budget and Management secretary Wendel Avisado, the supplemental social amelioration program (SAP) for those affected by the ECQ implementation this week has already been prepared. The estimated number of beneficiaries is 22.9 million or 80% of the total population in NCR, Bulacan, Cavite, Laguna, and Rizal (28.6 million), 5% higher than last year’s.
An amount of Php 1,000 per individual and not more than Php 4,000 per family is said to be allocated. This will be directly released by the DBM to Local Government Units (LGUs) for distribution to affected individuals in kind. Meanwhile, the president suggests that the list of beneficiaries be based on last year’s Bayanihan 1, and says that it will be signed by him later tonight for immediate rollout.
Extension of ECQ
There has been no statement that the implemented week-long ECQ in cities under NCR Plus (Metro Manila, Bulacan, Cavite, Laguna, and Rizal) will be extended until the 30th of April.
Watch the full video of Talk to the People (March 29, 2021) below:
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