COVID-19 vaccination in the Philippines
The COVID-19 vaccination program in the Philippines was a mass immunization campaign against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the virus that causes coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), in response to the pandemic in the country. The vaccination program was initiated by the Duterte administration on March 1, 2021, a day after the arrival of the country's first vaccine doses which were donated by the Chinese government.[2]
Date
March 1, 2021 – July 22, 2023
- Achieve herd immunity
- Fully vaccinate 70% of the population (77.1 million) against COVID-19[1]
Department of Health (DOH)
166,423,405 total doses administered[b]
65.16% of the Filipino population has received their first dose of a two-dose vaccine or a single-dose vaccine
67.75% has been fully vaccinated
19.72% has received a booster doses
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued emergency use authorizations (EUA) to 10 COVID-19 vaccines (in chronological order): Pfizer–BioNTech, Oxford–AstraZeneca, Sinovac, Sputnik V, Janssen, Covaxin, Moderna, Sinopharm BIBP, Sputnik Light and Novavax.
As of February 19, 2023, 166,423,405 total vaccine doses have been administered throughout the country, with 73,873,958 being fully vaccinated, 21,500,083 booster doses administered.
Controversies[edit]
Black market[edit]
In January 2021, during the time when only the Pfizer–BioNTech vaccine had an emergency use authorization, it was reported that an alleged black market of smuggled vaccines from China has established itself in the Philippines. The demand for the vaccines is particularly high for Chinese nationals in the country, especially those employed by Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGOs). The doses are reportedly sold at inflated prices, considerably more expensive than the standard price of the same vaccines in China.[151]
In late March 2021, the FDA released an advisory cautioning the public against fake vaccines and that vaccines which had emergency use authorization are not authorized to be sold commercially. Although as of that date, there are no reports yet of fake vaccines proliferating in the country as per the FDA.[152]
Line jumping[edit]
The DOH reported in March 2021 that a number of individuals had jumped the line to get the vaccine, becoming vaccinated despite being otherwise ineligible to do so.[153] These include several local government officials, prompting the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) to issue show cause orders against them to explain why they were vaccinated,[154] and actor Mark Anthony Fernandez, who was vaccinated despite not belonging to a priority group for the vaccine.[155] Fernandez, for his part, claimed that he had underlying health conditions that otherwise made him eligible.[156]
The issue has raised the concerns of the Commission on Human Rights,[157] and has also led to the WHO warning the Philippine government that it risks losing access to its share of vaccines provided by COVAX if the practice continues.[158]
A number of suggestions were floated to address line jumping, with Senator Franklin Drilon urging the government to ramp up the country's vaccine supply,[159] and Representative Precious Hipolito, who represents the second district of Quezon City, filing a bill that would amend the Philippines' COVID-19 vaccination law to criminalize the practice.[160]