MANILA – The Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID) has approved the list of specific priority population groups for vaccination against coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).
Presidential spokesperson Harry Roque said IATF-EID based the list on the resolution presented by the Interim National Immunization Technical Advisory Group and the Department of Health Technical Advisory Group.
Based on the resolution, front-line health workers in both national and local from private and public facilities, health professionals and non-professionals like students, nursing aides, janitors, and barangay health workers belong to Priority Group “A1.”
Senior citizens are under Priority Group “A2,” while persons with comorbidities are under Priority Group “A3”; under Priority Group “A4” are frontline personnel in essential sectors, including uniformed personnel and indigents fall under Priority Group “A5.”
Teachers and social workers belong to Priority Group “B1,” other government workers and essential workers are listed under Priority Groups “B2” and “B3,” respectively.
Under Priority Group “B4” are socio-demographic groups at “significantly higher risk other than senior citizens and indigenous people,” while overseas Filipino Workers and other remaining workforce fall under Priority Groups “B5” and “B6,” respectively.
The rest of the Filipino population is under Priority Group “C.”
He also said recommendations on the criteria for allocation of the first batch of Pfizer-BioNTech vaccines were also approved by the IATF-EID.
“With regard to the allocation of the first tranche of the Pfizer BioNTech vaccine for healthcare workers, this will be the allocation framework to be followed: a) all the COVID-19 dedicated hospitals, b) COVID-19 referral hospitals, c) DOH-owned hospitals, d) LGU hospitals, e) hospitals for uniformed services/personnel, and f) private hospitals,” he added.
Furthermore, IATF-EID gave its nod to the recommendations on health profiling, screening, and informed consent in the patient pathway, and vaccination cards.
According to him, the government would select areas for sub-prioritization based on the COVID-19 burden of disease, which includes the “current active cases, attack rate per 100,000 population in the past 4 weeks, and population density.”/PN
