DAVAO CITY – The city government expanded its coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) inoculation drive to the A4 (essential front-liners) priority group this week, with 2,790 eligible individuals having received their first dose on Wednesday.
In a statement on Thursday, the city government said this group includes private sector employees required to physically report to work, government personnel, workers in the informal sector, the self-employed who work outside of their homes, and private household workers.
“They are being inoculated alongside healthcare workers, senior citizens, and persons with comorbidities,” it said.
Also on Wednesday, the Department of Tourism-11 (Davao Region) supported the city government and the Davao Tourism Association (DATA) in holding a vaccination program for its stakeholders dubbed “Bakuna by the Sea”.
The vaccination for the government employees was also conducted at the University Of Southeastern Philippines Obrero Campus and the University of Philippines Mindanao Campus.
The vaccination rollout is a partnership between the Davao City Health Office, the Association of Regional Executives in National Agencies (ARENA 11), and the two universities.
In an interview Wednesday, Councilor Pamela Librado-Morata stressed the need for the immediate vaccination of workers under the A4 category and installing more vaccination hubs to cater to the economic front-liners in the city.
“There is a need to fast-track an accessible and efficient vaccination for the A4 group, it is the key for our economy to recover,” she said.
In her privilege speech during Tuesday’s regular session of the 19th City Council, she said there is an immediate need for the essential workers under the A4 category to be vaccinated earlier and to be prioritized in the list as their line of work makes them vulnerable to Covid-19, owing to the fact that they are exposed to a lot of people on a regular basis, commute to and from work daily.
She said when the city was placed under modified enhanced community quarantine (MECQ), companies and government offices are both encouraged to pay attention to the health and welfare of their employees, especially during the pandemic.
She also said a special lane or vaccination hub must also be allotted for workers where they can get the jabs during their free time at work.
“In a matter of weeks, thousands of vaccines are due to arrive and hopefully vaccination for the A4 category can be started. In a similar manner, Davao City can do the same by installing special vaccination hubs for our A4 workers,” she added.
Source: Philippines News Agency
