Philippines starts COVID-19 vaccinations with Sinovac doses

The Philippines began its COVID-19 vaccination program on Monday with the inoculation of health workers using 600,000 doses of Sinovac donated by China.

Philippine General Hospital (PGH) Director Gerardo D. Legaspi was among the first to receive the vaccine along with FDA’s Rolando Domingo and infectious disease expert Edsel Salvana.

Despite initial low interest—only 12% of PGH staff were willing to take the Sinovac vaccine based on a survey—the hospital vaccinated 96 personnel in an hour, exceeding expectations.

Vaccine czar Carlito Galvez Jr. emphasized that vaccination is a moral obligation and stressed the importance of early arrival of effective vaccines for economic recovery.