The Department of Health (DOH) on Friday, May 14, said it was not recommending the proposal for the country to have “vaccine pass” that would supposedly allow vaccinated individuals to have “unlimited” access to business establishments, such as dining and other leisure activities.

In a press briefing, Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said they were not in favor of the proposal because there was no sufficient evidence suggesting vaccinated individuals with complete doses of COVID-19 vaccines would no longer get sick or transmit the disease.

“Dahil nga po dito sa mga paunang ebidensiya na binigay sa atin, hindi po nakakapagblock ng transmission adequately ang mga bakuna na mayroon tayo ngayon,” Vergeire said.

(Because of the initial evidence that we have, the vaccines we have now do not block the virus transmission adequately.)

“As we have said, the benefit that we can get from the vaccines is reducing severe infections and hospitalization. As to preventing mild to moderate infections, we cannot give that assurance to the public,” she added in a mix of English and Filipino.

The health spokesperson reminded the public that even if people have completed the two doses of the COVID-19 vaccine, they still need to observe minimum health standards.

“Ito pong sinasabi na vaccine pass ay hindi pa rin mairerekomenda ng kagawaran,” Vergeire said. (We cannot recommend this so-called vaccine pass for now).

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in its updated guidelines said that fully vaccinated people no longer need to wear a face mask or stay 6 feet away from others in most settings either indoor or outdoor.

The Philippines, which is suffering one of the worst outbreaks in Southeast Asia, has been criticized for the slow pace of its vaccination program.

As the country received more vaccine supplies, Vergeire said the public should expect more people to get vaccinated daily. Currently, the Philippines is vaccinating 67,000 to 83,000 people per day.

The Philippines has so far inoculated 2,025,038 of its 110-million population. Vaccine czar Carlito Galvez Jr said on May 4 that due to India’s move to focus its vaccine supplies on its own population, the Philippines may have to lower its vaccination goal to only half the population in 2021.

The government’s original goal is to vaccinate 70 million people, or around 70% of its population.

Aside from the global shortage on vaccine supplies, vaccine hesitancy among Filipinos remains high, based on a Pulse Asia Research Incorporated survey which showed 6 in 10 Filipinos don’t want to get vaccinated against COVID-19. The survey, however, was conducted before the record-high surge in cases in the country. – Rappler.com