The Philippines began vaccinating individuals on Wednesday with bivalent vaccines as protection against COVID-19.
Health Secretary Teodoro Herbosa was among the first to receive the bivalent vaccine at a ceremony attended by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. at the Philippine Heart Center in Quezon City.
Bivalent vaccines given by Lithuania earlier this month were used for this rollout, totaling more than 390,000 doses. The Department of Health’s regional centers across the nation have already received these vaccine doses.
Bivalent vaccines offer protection against the original strain of the virus that causes COVID-19 as well as Omicron subvariants BA.4 and BA.5, the DOH said.
Based on DOH guidelines, an individual may be vaccinated with the bivalent vaccines after at least four to six months after their second booster vaccination.
Healthcare workers and senior citizens will be given priority to receive the bivalent vaccines.
”To date, the DOH is taking significant steps in pushing for the acquisition of these additional modified vaccines that can provide Filipinos with better protection against the virus,” the DOH said.
