Inoculation of some private sector employees and more gov't workers now next in priority under A4 group
The Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) has released the list of members included in the A4 priority group under a new simplified list.
Those eligible under the A4 priority category now include private sector workers required to be physically present at their designated workplace outside their residences; employees in government agencies including government-owned and controlled corporations and local government units; and informal sector workers and self-employed who may be required to work outside their residences, and those working in private households.
“Inaprubahan ang rekomendasyon na gawing mas simple ang priority group A4 (The IATF has approved the recommendation to make the A4 priority group more simple),” palace spokesman Harry Roque said earlier today in a press briefing.
Roque said the IATF has also approved the deployment of vaccines for the A4 group in the National Capital Region, Bulacan, Pampanga, Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal, Metro Cebu, and Metro Davao.
The IATF has also re-categorized to priority group A1 overseas Filipino workers who are bound for deployment within the next four months from the intended date of vaccination.
Vaccine czar Carlito Galvez has earlier said that vaccination of those eligible under A4 is slated to start by June as he expects a more steady supply of vaccines by then.
For now, the IATF has tasked local government units to continue prioritizing A1, A2, and A3 priority groups “by establishing special lanes and / or vaccination centers for health frontliners, senior citizens, and other vulnerable sectors of the population.”
Meanwhile, the government has started today the vaccination of athletes bound for the Tokyo Olympics slated for July to August, and the Southeast Asian Games (SEA Games), scheduled November to December in Hanoi, Vietnam.
The vaccination, which started today at the Manila Prince Hotel in Ermita, Manila, also included coaches, sports officials and staff, and members of the media.
Roque announced last Friday, May 21, that the IATF has approved the early vaccination of athletes and delegates to the Olympics and SEA Games by including them in the government's priority list.
(Thumbnail and banner photo by Andy Zapata / The Philippine Star)