The Department of Health (DOH) said Monday a total of 284,553 Filipinos have completed their COVID-19 vaccination as of May 1, two months after the country began its inoculation program.
According to Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire, 270,785 were health workers, 3,083 were senior citizens, and 10,685 are persons with comorbidities.
Meanwhile, 1,650,318 individuals have received their first dose of either the AstraZeneca or Sinovac COVID-19 vaccine.
Of this number, 275,924 are persons with comorbidities, 278,183 are senior citizens, and 1,718 are essential workers who were inoculated during a Labor Day ceremony on May 1.
“There were 1,094,493 frontline healthcare workers in the Philippines or 70.9% of the more than 1.5 million masterlisted [for] priority group A1 population had been vaccinated as of May 1,” Vergeire added.
The DOH official also reminded vaccine recipients that full protection from the virus will not be effective until two to three weeks after the second dose.
“We still advise our citizens who are vaccinated to comply still with the minimum public health protocols. Tandaan po natin, hindi po assurance na [kapag] kayo ay nabakunahan ay hindi na po kayo magkakasakit (Let’s remember that getting vaccinated does not mean you will no longer get sick),” she said.
Last week, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said that over 2.45% or 24,698 out of more than 1 million Filipinos vaccinated against COVID-19 reported experiencing side effects or adverse event following immunization (AEFI).
Over 284,000 Filipinos complete COVID-19 vaccination: DOH
FDA chief Eric Domingo said 17,654 AEFI received AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine while 7,044 received Sinovac’s CoronaVac.
A total of 24,330 cases were non-serious, 344 were serious reactions not involving death, and 24 cases involving death.
The most common reported side effects were fever, headache, pain at the vaccination site, muscle pains, and increased blood pressure.
Meanwhile, serious side effects of COVID-19 vaccination would require hospital admission, involves death or a life-threatening reaction, and causes significant disability or birth defects and fetal malformations.
The FDA chief clarified that the National AEFI Committee classified 19 of the 24 deaths as “coincidental” or not caused by the COVID-19 vaccination. All other fatalities are still undergoing validation.
Domingo added that 11 deaths were caused by COVID-19, eight patients suffered a heart attack or stroke, three died from infectious diseases other than COVID-19, and two cases are still under review.
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