MANDALUYONG CITY -- Philippine Red Cross (PRC) Chairman and CEO Sen. Dick Gordon continues to deploy PRC’s Bakuna Buses, Bakuna Centers, and Bakuna Teams to help the local government units in ramping up the vaccination efforts to protect unvaccinated individuals. Last February 21, 2022, PRC vaccinated 2,374 individuals in Navotas, Laguna, Tarlac, Pangasinan, General Santos, Sultan Kudarat, Lanao del Sur, Agusan del Norte, and Surigao del Norte.

Despite the decline of COVID-19 cases in the country, Chairman Gordon urges everyone to get vaccinated or receive additional protection by getting booster shots. Chairman Gordon said that it is imperative to get vaccinated to prevent severe COVID-19 cases and prevent another outbreak like what happened at the start of 2022, where the Department of Health (DOH) was reporting almost 32,000 new cases per day. Those numbers have lowered since then. As of February 21, 2022, the DOH reported just 1,427 new cases.

“Kailangan ay magingat pa rin tayo sa COVID-19, kahit na bumababa ang kaso, dapat hindi natin kalimutan ang pag practice ng health protocols, ang pag-suot ng face mask, at pag sanitize ng mga kamay. Patuloy ang Red Cross sa pag abot sa mga malalayong lugar sa pamamagitan ng Bakuna Buses upang mabigyan proteksyon ang mga taong nangangailangan nito,” Gordon said.

Since March 2021, when PRC started its vaccination program, the humanitarian organization has already administered 1,020,230 doses of COVID-19 vaccines through the 17 Bakuna Buses, 26 Bakuna Centers, and Bakuna teams, to help the different local government units hasten their vaccination efforts and protect the people from the virus. (Philippine Red Cross)