Senator urges Biden to commit 5 million vaccines to Philippines

MANILA, Philippines — US Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer is urging President Joe Biden to set aside at least five million doses of COVID-19 vaccines for the Philippines – a key ally – as part of the US commitment to donate excess vaccines to other countries.

“I urge you to commit at least five million doses of COVID-19 vaccines to the Republic of the Philippines as part of the United States’ commitment to send 80 million of such doses to foreign nations over the next several months,” Schumer, a Democrat from New York, said in a letter to Biden dated June 1.

The senator said the US has a long, intertwined history with the Philippines, with Filipino-Americans making immeasurable contributions to New York and to American society, particularly through their “selfless and professional efforts” as frontline health care workers at the time of COVID-19 pandemic.

He noted that the Philippines has suffered over 1.2 million COVID-19 cases including 21,000 deaths. The country in recent weeks has seen a worrisome uptick in cases, moving from a seven-day average of 4,900 cases on May 25 to over 6,500 on May 31.

To combat the rising COVID-19 cases in the Philippines, Schumer said the country needs assistance in securing more vaccines to protect its population.

Currently, only 3.7 percent or roughly four million Filipinos have received at least one dose of the vaccine, and only 1.1 percent or 1.2 million are fully vaccinated.

The senator mentioned the delay in the crucial shipment of 17.7 million AstraZeneca vaccine doses from Thailand’s Siam Bioscience, “putting the country’s vaccination efforts in dire straits.”

The Biden administration announced on May 31 that the US would release 60 million doses of AstraZeneca vaccine to support the global vaccination program seen as key to ending the COVID-19 pandemic.

“The AstraZeneca vaccine is not authorized for use domestically, however, other nations such as the Philippines have approved its use. Sending these vaccines abroad would not diminish our ability to vaccinate our population at home as the United States has more than enough FDA-authorized vaccines on hand made by other manufacturers,” he added.

Schumer said he fully supports Biden’s decision to assist other nations with the millions of doses of AstraZeneca vaccine stockpiled by the US government.

“As a key ally in this region, it is imperative that the United States support the Philippines by committing at least five million doses of vaccines to the nation,” Schumer said.

Schumer said Filipino health care workers have long been on the frontlines of US hospitals and emergency rooms.

“Indeed, throughout the pandemic Filipino-American nurses and doctors put themselves in harm’s way to save lives,” Schumer said. “Nearly a third of the nurses who’ve died of coronavirus in the US are Filipino, even though Filipino nurses make up just four percent of the nursing population nationwide,” he pointed out.

“The US can honor the service and sacrifice of these heroes by providing the urgently needed five million life-saving doses as quickly as possible.” – Helen Flores