Filipinos do not need to choose which COVID-19 vaccine brand they want since all of them will be on “equal footing” once the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) grants them emergency use authorization, the Department of Health (DOH) said Tuesday.
“Basta nabigyan na ng EUA ng FDA (Food and Drug Administration), equal footing na po ‘yan. Pare-pareho na po silang safe at epektibo. Hindi po kailangan mamili,” said DOH Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire.
(As long as the EUA has been approved by the FDA (Food and Drug Administration), that is equal footing. They are equally safe and effective. No need to choose.)
Vergeire made the remark after Presidential spokesperson Harry Roque said Filipinos who would avail of free COVID-19 vaccines from the government should not be “picky” when it comes to what brand they would receive.
The DOH official said the FDA would ensure that all COVID-19 vaccines that pass through it are safe and effective.
“Lahat ng bakuna kapag pumapasok sa ating bansa, sisiguruhin ng FDA na ito ay ligtas ay epektibo,” she said.
(All vaccines when entering our country, the FDA will ensure that it is safe and effective.)
All COVID-19 vaccines safe, effective once approved by FDA – Vergeire
“Kaya kung ano pong maunang bakuna na dumating, atin pong tanggapin ‘yan. Tandaan po natin, ang objective po ng gobyerno ay mabigyan tayo ng bakuna para maibsan ang ating sitwasyon.”
(So whatever vaccine comes first, let’s accept that. Let us remember, the objective of the government is to give us a vaccine to alleviate our situation.)
Vergeire noted that getting a vaccine is one of the most effective measures in reducing the number of COVID-19 cases.
Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine has been proven 95% effective after human trials. It already applied for EUA before the Philippines’ FDA.
Meanwhile, the Chinese COVID-19 vaccine from Sinovac only reached 65% and 78% after human trials in Indonesia and Brazil. It is yet to apply for a EUA in the Philippines.
The government earlier announced that the national government secured some 25 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine from Chinese firm Sinovac. Its first batch of 50,000 doses is expected to arrive in the country next month.