Philippines Decides Not to Vaccinate Medical Staff with China's Sinovac Vaccine... "Effectiveness Below Expectations"

Excluded from vaccination target: medical staff
Vaccination limited to adults aged 18-59 only

Appearance of Sinovac's COVID-19 vaccine [Image source=EPA Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Suhwan] The Philippine health authorities have approved the emergency use of the Chinese Sinovac vaccine but decided not to administer it to healthcare workers, who are prioritized for vaccination.

According to local media such as the Philippine Star on the 23rd, the Philippine Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the emergency use of Sinovac's 'CoronaVac' vaccine the day before but excluded healthcare workers from the priority vaccination group. The reason is that the vaccine's effectiveness fell short of expectations.

Eric Domingo, director of the Philippine FDA, explained this measure by stating, "Clinical trial results conducted on healthcare workers in Brazil showed that the Sinovac vaccine's effectiveness in preventing COVID-19 was only 50.4%." It is interpreted that the vaccine did not demonstrate sufficient effectiveness in a situation where healthcare workers are constantly exposed to COVID-19 patients.

Previously, Philippine healthcare workers had expressed reluctance to receive the Sinovac vaccine, citing that it was not fully verified and had lower preventive effectiveness.

Additionally, health authorities stated that only healthy adults aged 18 to 59 are eligible for the Sinovac vaccine. Regarding this, Harry Roque, presidential spokesperson, said, "Economic frontliners and soldiers will be prioritized for vaccination," adding, "100,000 doses have been allocated to soldiers."

Spokesperson Roque also commented on the controversy surrounding the effectiveness of the Sinovac vaccine, saying, "It is better than taking no action at all."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.