It has not been easy to start vaccination for those in the A4 category-or economic frontliners or those doing fieldwork in Quezon City Friday.
At 5 p.m. Thursday, the city announced that it would open vaccine slots on the EZconsult website, the platform where they can register.
And since day one, the site was flooded, and there was heavy traffic.
That’s why as early as 3 pm, the site had technical difficulties, and people couldn’t enter to book.
It was past 7 o’clock when EZconsult issued a memo and asked people not to log in first because there was a problem with the system.
Many people got annoyed because the platform doesn’t seem to have prepared for the influx of registrants, especially since the A4 category is wide.
At around 11 pm, the Quezon City government announced that it would temporarily suspend online booking.
EZconsult apologized.
But past midnight, ABS-CBN News received a report that the website has been reorganized and people have booked.
That’s why the vaccination continues on Friday.
According to Mayor Joy Belmonte, they received 43,000 vaccines recently.
Also read: LGUs preparing to vaccinate A4 category
Vaccination of A4 category to begin in Quezon City
It is distributed at multiple vaccination sites and is scheduled until June 15.
Those who cannot go online can ask for help from the barangay.
Meanwhile, a lawmaker is pushing to make COVID-19 tests free for job seekers.
According to Sen. Sonny Angara, who promoted Senate Bill 2291, some job seekers have a problem with some employers’ requirement of negative COVID-19 tests.
For Angara, the P3,500 to P5,000 COVID-19 test equivalent to two sacks of rice costs a lot.
He also said that the cost of the RT-PCR test and the cost of the trip to the testing site is equal to half a month’s salary of the minimum wage earner.
Although some job applications are online, he said, the hiring process still has face-to-face interviews.
He added that many are already complaining about having the COVID-19 test as a pre-employment requirement, promoting the free swab test to job seekers, especially if it is an employment stimulus.
Under the proposal, PhilHealth will be responsible for COVID-19 testing.
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