MANILA, Philippines — The government is proposing to begin the vaccination of minors aged 12 to 17 against COVID-19 by mid-October, the head of the government’s coronavirus vaccine procurement said.
Vaccine czar Carlito Galvez Jr. on Thursday said the country has 23.75 million COVID-19 jabs on hand and over 20 million vaccine doses are expected to arrive until the first week of October.
“We are proposing, Mr. President, to open up the vaccination for children by mid-October… We are capable of vaccinating 12 million children between 12 and years old,” Galvez said.
“But our recommendation is to prioritize those with comorbidities and the children of healthcare workers,” he added.
Some local government units have launched pre-registration for the COVID-19 vaccination of minors aged 12 to 17. The country’s Food and Drug Administration has approved the use of COVID-19 vaccines made by Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna for children aged 12 and up.
Since March, 19.37 million people have completed vaccination against COVID-19, while 23.28 million have received partial protection.