The Department of Health-Region 12 (DOH-12) has stepped up preparations for inoculation of Soccksargen residents under the A4 priority group against the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19).
Arjohn Gangoso, DOH-12 health education and promotion officer, said Monday the master listing of eligible individuals is ongoing, in coordination with relevant agencies and rural health units (RHUs).
Those eligible under the A4 category are essential government and private employees, self-employed, and workers in the informal sector.
Sari-sari (retail) store owners, household workers, and those working in small food outlets, wet markets, and related establishments are included.
“These are workers who are required to report physically in their workplaces and engage with people during this pandemic,” Gangoso said in an online radio program hosted by the Philippine Information Agency-12.
Registration is being done through barangay health stations, Human Resources officers, and assigned coordinators.
Gangoso said they are still waiting for the allotment of vaccines and the final advisory from the DOH central office regarding the expansion of the vaccination coverage.
Inoculation for health care workers (A1), senior citizens (A2), and persons with comorbidities (A3) are ongoing.
As of Sunday, a total of 112,269 persons in the region have already received their first doses of the AstraZeneca or Sinovac, with 57,541 of them already with two doses.
DOH-12 has so far listed 409,012 in the region’s four provinces and four cities as eligible for vaccination under the A1, A2, and A3 groups, based on the registration data provided by RHUs.
“We don’t accept walk-in availment as everyone needs to undergo proper processes prior to the vaccination,” he said.
Since March, the DOH central office has delivered 210,360 doses of AstraZeneca and CoronaVac vaccines to the region.
As of June 13, Region 12 still has 3,400 active Covid-19 cases, with 1,342 from South Cotabato.
Out of 16,021 total infections, 12,154 recovered and 465 died.
Source: Philippines News Agency
