BY GILBERT P. BAYORAN
The single dose Johnson and Johnson’s Janssen vaccine appears to be more popular in Negros Occidental, as more local government units have requested for additional supplies, on top of their daily allocations, Provincial Administrator Rayfrando Diaz said.
Diaz said yesterday that LGUs utilized 2,018 of the 2,400 vials of J&J vaccine delivered to them, with a utilization rate of 92 percent, as of July 28.
An additional 2,826 vials of J&J were again transported yesterday to various LGUs in the province.
The Department of Health sent 14,000 vials or 70,000 doses of J&J jabs to Negros Occidental last week. Bacolod City also got 30,000 doses of the vaccine. Each vial contains five doses.
SENIOR CITIZENS
“We are happy that our senior citizens are the ones coming out of their residences and asking to be vaccinated,” Diaz said.
Most of the recipients of the J&J vaccine are those in the A2 to A3 categories, or senior citizens and adults with comorbidities.
The provincial government is planning to complete the delivery of the remaining J&J shots to LGUs by July 31, but may extend it next week.
The cities of Victorias and Silay requested for 500 more doses each of the J&J vaccine, on top of the 1,000 doses vaccine allocations to them daily, Diaz said.
He also said that LGUs want to complete the inoculation of those in the A1 to A3 categories so they can start vaccinating those in the A4 category, or the economic frontliners.
Diaz added there were proposals to vaccinate economic workers at the barangay level to avoid overcrowding in vaccination centers.
More Sinovac vaccines are also expected to be distributed to LGUs, starting next week.
STILL UNDER GCQ
Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson signed yesterday afternoon Executive Order No. 21-39, series of 2021, extending the duration of the General Community Quarantine over the entire province of Negros Occidental until August 31.
Bacolod will be on GCQ with Heightened Restrictions until Aug. 15.
CASES DOWN
Provincial Incident Management Team records show that the daily Covid-19 active cases in Negros Occidental dropped further to 1,269 as of yesterday, from its peak of more than 2,400 in previous weeks.
Diaz also reported that the number of those in quarantine facilities dropped to about 20 in Cadiz, more than 50 in Silay City, and about 150 in EB Magalona, far lower compared to the previous month.
“We are again trying our best to stimulate our economic activities,” Diaz said, adding that Capitol is continuing the inoculation of those in the A4 category, using its procured AstraZeneca vaccines.
He also said they are hitting the target set by the Department of Health that 40 percent of the senior citizens included in their master list should be vaccinated by the end of this month.
As of July 27, Diaz said they had already inoculated 33 percent of senior citizens in the list.*
