MANILA, Philippines — More than 63 million Filipinos have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19 a year since the government began its immunization program, the Department of Health said Tuesday.
In a briefing, Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said more than 135 million vaccine doses have been administered as of February 28.
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According to Vergeire, 93.38% of healthcare workers, 62.82% of senior citizens and 92.51% of people with comorbidities have completed vaccination against COVID-19.
Authorities are aiming to fully vaccinate 90 million individuals—out of the country’s 110 million population—by end-June.
Meanwhile, over 10 million individuals have so far received booster doses. The government’s goal is to give boosters to 72 million Filipinos this year.
"We are grateful to everyone who worked hard to protect community through vaccination," Vergeire said.
A poll conducted by Social Weather Stations in December and released in January suggested that only 8% of adult Filipinos were unwilling to get immunized against COVID-19.
Vaccine czar Carlito Galvez Jr. earlier said the government will shift its focus to conducting house-to-house and mobile COVID-19 immunization drives after a drop in vaccine uptake.
The Philippines has reported over 3.6 million COVID-19 cases since the pandemic started, with 56,451 deaths. — Gaea Katreena Cabico