Rappler
IBP stresses right to informed consent amid government’s ‘brand agnostic’ vaccine policy
House Committee on Health Chairperson Angelina Tan supports the Department of Health's (DOH) 'brand agnostic' policy for COVID-19 vaccinations, which aims to prevent overcrowding at vaccination sites by not announcing specific vaccine brands beforehand.
Tan emphasized that individuals must still be informed of the vaccine they will receive on-site and sign a vaccine-specific informed consent form detailing potential side effects.
This clarifies concerns that the brand-agnostic policy would remove the right to information and potentially lead to vaccine hesitancy.
Integrated Bar of the Philippines (IBP) president Domingo Cayosa stated that while non-prior public disclosure of vaccine brands may be practical, it does not remove a citizen's right to informed consent.
Cayosa added that individuals must be individually appraised about the brand and other details to intelligently consent to or decline the vaccination.
The DOH's suggestion to refrain from announcing vaccine brands was made following incidents of large queues for specific brands like Pfizer.
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See how different news organizations are covering this story. Below are the original articles from various Philippine news sources that contributed to this summary.
President Rodrigo Duterte ordered local government units (LGUs) not to announce COVID-19 vaccine brands to prevent overcrowding at vaccination sites.
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Senator Risa Hontiveros is urging the Department of Health (DOH) to rethink its policy of not disclosing COVID-19 vaccine brands before inoculation, citing potential negative impacts on public trust.
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The Commission on Human Rights (CHR) has reminded the government that human rights must remain central to its COVID-19 pandemic response.
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Vice President Leni Robredo expressed concern that the Department of Health's (DOH) 'brand agnostic' policy might discourage Filipinos from registering for COVID-19 vaccines.
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Quezon City Mayor Joy Belmonte supports the Department of the Interior and Local Government's (DILG) directive for local government units (LGUs) to refrain from announcing specific COVID-19 vaccine brands at vaccination sites.
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