COVID booster shots need a little bit of a boost
Everyone please get boosted already. (Photo: Verywell)
We’ve all been clamoring for everything to return to normal and yet, we’re still in the discussions of whether or not a vaccine should be taken.
The Department of Health (DOH) is looking for ways to further encourage the public to get booster shots against COVID-19. It has come to a point wherein the private sector and some members of the vaccine expert panel have recommended that the government redefine the meaning of full vaccination due to low booster shot uptake.
According to Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergere, only 12.3 million of 44 million eligible individuals have received their COVID-19 booster shot. For now, getting boosted is a voluntary effort, but conversations are starting to pivot it towards a requirement. The doctors are already in support.
Health Undersecretary Myrna Cabotaje mentioned in a public briefing that the DOH is looking into including booster shots as mandatory when entering establishments. Given that the Philippines has fully vaccinated 67 million individuals and only 12 million have been boosted, it might certainly be the case if the desire to achieve a ‘new normal’ before President Duterte steps down is to be followed.
“Filipinos sometimes need that kind of pressure,” Presidential Adviser for Entrepreneurship Joey Concepcion said in support of the expiration of COVID-19 vaccine cards. Nothing gets people moving more than a deadline, right?
Speaking of pressure, The World Health Organization (WHO) warns the Philippines of the upcoming weeks for large social gatherings. Whether it be political rallies or religious holidays, there’s going to be a lot of contact with other people.
As an additional note, the DOH reminds Filipinos to avoid kissing. Religious statues can be worshiped in a socially distanced manner. There’s no need to be transferring around saliva with strangers. At least not yet. Mask up, bless up.
Is the pandemic dying down?
It’s not just here in the Philippines, the African Union and Covax have declined purchasing any more Moderna shots as nations struggle to turn their supplies into inoculations.
“The vaccine landscape has changed drastically in recent months,” said Safura Abdool Karim, a public-health lawyer and researcher in Johannesburg. Even though Moderna announced that their vaccine was highly effective against new variants, it was a struggle for the company to distribute it to large parts of the world. Investors took notice which took Moderna shares down as much as 6.3%.
According to the WHO, only 15% of Africa’s population is fully vaccinated, compared with a global average of 57%. The cause? The delay of vaccine delivery was so long that enthusiasm turned into hesitation. It’s also worth noting that the delayed distribution was also affecting the short shelf life of the vaccines.
“The focus was almost exclusively on vaccines, and not on vaccinations,” said Edward Kelley, a former director of health services for the WHO.
