The government needs to scale up the monthly deliveries of up to 25 million doses of Covid-19 vaccines to meet the demand for the country’s inoculation program.

National Task Force (NTF) Against Covid-19 Chief Implementer Secretary Carlito Galvez Jr. said they are working overtime to deliver more to local government units (LGUs).

“In order to meet the monthly demand and increasing capacities of all regions and provinces, the Philippines need to deliver 25 million doses monthly. So iyon po ang ang parang ini-scale up namin, Mr. President, na kailangan mayroon tayong mga delivery na 25 million (So that’s what we’re scaling up, Mr. President, that we must have deliveries of 25 million doses),” Galvez said during the Cabinet meeting with President Rodrigo Duterte on Wednesday night.

To date, the Philippines has received 31,360,700 doses of Covid-19 vaccines.

“Our Philippine negotiating team, led by the Department of Finance, and also our diplomatic team headed by the DFA (Department of Foreign Affairs), is now doing our best to get more vaccines through our negotiation and also diplomatic relations with other countries,” he said. “We are expecting to meet the demand over the supply in October.”

The government is likewise waiting for another 132 million doses, both bought and donated, within the next six months.

Galvez urged LGUs to maximize the available supply for the vaccination of the most vulnerable sectors such as health care workers, senior citizens, and adults with co-morbidities to achieve “population protection.”

So far, the Philippines has recorded 18,174,405 vaccine doses administered — 11.3 million first dose and over 6.8 million second doses. (PNA)