MANILA - Pasig City on Tuesday began simulations for its COVID-19 inoculation program as the city expects to administer the first batch of vaccines this month.

Pasig City is “ready” to distribute and administer COVID-19 jabs in its 16 vaccination sites as soon as the doses arrive, Pasig City Mayor Vico Sotto told reporters.

“We don't know exactly when they will arrive... Basta ang importante, and lungsod ng Pasig, handa anytime,” he said.

(What is important is the City of Pasig is ready anytime.)

“Kahit mamayang hapon dumating yan ready na kami,” he said.

(Even if the vaccines arrive this afternoon, we are ready.)

While Pasig has registered at least 95 percent of its population for its COVID-19 vaccination program through the PasigPass, a QR code which is also used for the city’s contact tracing, Sotto admitted that the number of people who are “willing to have the vaccine” at this time “might not be that high.”

“Wala naman tayong official survey pero ang tingin ko ‘pag nakita na nila na yung mga doktor natin tapos okay naman sila, tataas din ang confidence rating ng mamamayan,” he said.

(We don’t have an official survey but I think if they see doctors being vaccinated and they are okay, the public’s confidence will also improve.)

LOOK: Pasig City set to begin its #COVID19 vaccination simulation pic.twitter.com/0AFjiwPVml

— Kat Domingo (@_katrinadomingo) February 16, 2021

Sotto earlier said Pasig hopes to inoculate 700,000 people against COVID-19, with the city’s 1,400 medical frontliners getting the jabs this month.

• Pasig City targets to vaccinate 700K individuals against COVID-19
• Pasig to rollout vaccines for medical frontliners as early as Feb: Vico Sotto

About a quarter of Pasig’s COVID-19 vaccines will be given to workers from the rural and city health office, private and public hospitals, senior citizens, indigents, and the uniformed personnel, Sotto earlier said.

• Pasig can vaccinate priority groups vs COVID-19 in 21 days if shots enough, says city officer

The Department of Health is conducting a series of campaigns to educate the public about the benefits of being vaccinated against a disease, said Dr. Corazon Flores, DOH Director for the National Capital Region.

“Mayroong konti na namimili pa din ng type ng bakuna, ng brand,” she said.

(There are still some who want a specific type or brand.)

Pasig City remains open to purchasing any brand of the vaccine as long as it is approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Sotto said.

“Basta sinabi ng mga eksperto na safe ito, mabisa ito, willing kami bumili,” he said.

(As long as experts deem it safe and effective, we are willing to buy it.)

“If there are 2 available brands, we will choose which is more cost effective, pero if there is only one brand available, hindi din tayo makakapili. That’s the reality,” he said.

(But if there is only one brand available, we can’t choose. That’s the reality.)

Pasig earlier earmarked P300 million for the purchase of AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccines.

As of last month, Pasig has tallied at least 10,231 COVID-19 cases, with 415 deaths and 195 active infections.

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