The incident commander of Negros Oriental’s Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID) is discouraging people from taking alternative medicines and supplements against coronavirus disease 2019 and instead have themselves vaccinated.
“It is sad to note that while COVID-19 vaccines are available for free, many people still refuse to get vaccinated and turn to herbal and other forms of supplement medications,” said Dr. Liland Estacion, also the Assistant Provincial Health Officer, in a virtual presser late Tuesday afternoon.
These types do not work against COVID-19, especially if they do not have the approval of or are endorsed by the Bureau of Food and Drugs, she said.
“The vaccine is the most effective way to combat COVID-19 and is the one recommended by the World Health Organization and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention,” Estacion added, speaking in mixed English and Cebuano dialect.
She appealed to media practitioners promoting herbal supplements against COVID-19 on their radio programs and social media to instead help the government in encouraging people to get vaccinated.
The latest deaths due to COVID-19 in the province were unvaccinated individuals, she noted.
Health authorities kept emphasizing that those vaccinated against COVID-19 have a higher rate of not developing into a severe case or being hospitalized.
On Tuesday, Estacion reported the province had 44 new mortalities due to COVID-19.*PNA
