Sunday, January 31, 2021

Senator: Prepare supplies ahead of vaccine arrival

PIECE DE RESISTANCE Toym Imao’s towering barricades of bamboo and chairs commemorating the 1971 Diliman Commune have suddenly turned into a potent symbol of the University of the Philippines’ resistance against a fresh siege on freedom following the abrogation of its 1989 pact with the Department of National Defense. —NIÑO JESUS ORBETA

Regions

Bontoc COVID-19 cases still rising

BAGUIO CITY—The number of persons who contracted the coronavirus disease in Bontoc town in Mountain Province continued to rise with 34 new cases recorded after mass testing was held there following the detection of a dozen UK variant cases in five of its villages, officials said on Saturday. --Story by ALLAN MACATUNO AND VILLAMOR VISAYA JR. INQ

Board Talk

What’s in store for the workplace in 2021?

Last year was full of lessons learned and introspection. 2021, meanwhile, is a time of integration, optimization and greater reset: taking action from what we’ve learned from the crisis and rebuilding the landscape for the new reality. --Story by Yu Ming Chin

Newsletter / Join us

Has this been forwarded by a friend? Subscribe now to the Philippine Daily Inquirer Newsletter and get your latest news and important updates on COVID-19 and the enhanced community quarantine.

Get here

Banner Story

Senator: Prepare supplies ahead of vaccine arrival

By DJ Yap

The country’s vaccination managers need not “wait for the horse to arrive before they start building the cart,” but should begin preparing the apparatus for the mass inoculation program even before the arrival of the vaccine, Senate President Pro Tempore Ralph Recto said on Sunday.

In the meantime, the COVID-19 task force should start stocking up on vaccination supplies that are available in the market, Recto said in a statement.

“You don’t have to wait for the horse to arrive before you start building the cart,” Recto said, referring to ancillary requirements for vaccination, such as personal protective equipment or PPE, syringes, and refrigerators.

“There are also things [that] cannot be taken for granted, like transportation, and even small things like ice boxes needed for the last mile,” he said.

Government officials told senators during a recent hearing that the Department of Health (DOH) had a stockpile of 30.5 million 0.5 ml syringes, 3.6 million mixing syringes, 3.8 million safety collector boxes, 3.6 million masks, and 151,761 face shields.

The DOH claimed that the supplies were enough to meet initial vaccination requirements and could be scaled up if needed.

But Recto was not convinced, citing a “possible surge in cases on top of regular caseloads of public hospitals.”

“The other important thing is that this should be forward-deployed now to towns,” he said. “We cannot rely on a trickle-down system that will wait till the last minute,” he added.

“In the case of refrigerators that vaccines will need, there should now be a town-level listing of their availability. Vaccines are like ice cream, you don’t buy them in bulk without having a place to store them,” he said. --WITH A REPORT FROM CONSUELO MARQUEZ INQ

Editorial

Combating ‍credit card fraud

Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian was shocked early last month when he found out that his credit card had been hacked and he was hit with a hefty bill of about P1.1 million for liquor items ordered through a food delivery app. Gatchalian is unfortunately just one of the growing legion of Filipinos victimized by credit card fraud.

Read full story: opinion.inquirer.net