The Philippines’ Department of Health (DOH) reported 11,028 new COVID-19 infections on Sunday, bringing the entire number of confirmed cases within the Southeast Asian country to 795,051.
The price climbed to 13,425 after two more patients died from the viral disease, the DOH said.
The Philippines, which has about 110 million population, has tested over 9.7 million people since the outbreak in January 2020.
More Filipinos will receive the jabs because the government ramps up its COVID-19 immunization drive in the week , urging frontline medical workers and senior citizens with underlying conditions to urge inoculated.
The DOH said it’s speeding up the vaccination of its over 1.7 million healthcare workers.
Manila City Mayor Francisco Domagoso got his Sinovac jab on Sunday after the govt allowed the vaccination of mayors and governors in Metro Manila and areas with high infection rates.
Domagoso vouched for the security of the Chinese vaccine. “It’s an approved, safe product (approved) by our regulatory authority ,” he told reporters after getting the vaccine, urging his constituents to require the shots.
Metro Manila and its four adjacent areas remain under strict lockdown measures for an additional week as infections still surge.
The Philippines began vaccinations on March 1, each day after the primary batch of Sinovac’s CoronaVac vaccine donated by China arrived within the country.
The government aims to inoculate up to 70 million Filipinos this year to realize herd immunity, starting with health care workers and therefore the elderly.
