MM mayors seek seamless rollout
Members of the Metro Manila Council (MMC) urged those in-charge of the Covid-19 vaccine rollout to ensure a seamless distribution and inoculation process.
This was according to Marikina City Mayor Marcelino Teodoro in a radio interview Sunday morning.
The MMC, the governing body of the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA), met Saturday night discussing the vaccines manufactured by Sinovac, and donated by China, that arrived Sunday afternoon.
According to Teodoro, they have met with Secretaries Carlito Galvez, Vince Dizon and Francisco Duque where the mayors cleared to these officials regarding the system that should be followed in the allocation of the vaccines as the country expects the arrival of 600,000 doses of Sinovac and 500,000 doses of AstraZenaca.
The mayors also asked for the allocation of the vaccines since there is a standard order for it — first to the big hospitals and the small ones.
“The mayors clarified that the government’s prioritization plan since there is a pecking order for its distribution and there is a simulation exercise for the vaccine transport,” Teodoro said.
He also said there is a group that conducted a time and motion study from Villamor Airbase to determine the travel time to reach the Marikina storage facility which is situated in a five-hectare compound.
Teodoro said the mayors wanted to ensure to have a seamless deployment and administering of the vaccines, including the possibility that some healthcare workers will refuse to be vaccinated by Sinovac, citing its low efficacy rate.
The mayors though recognized the right of the health workers to refuse without prejudice to them to be inoculated of the vaccine they prefer.