Food and Drug Administration Director General Eric Domingo (File photo)
MANILA – The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Tuesday warned the public against counterfeit vaccines as authentic Covid-19 vaccines could be accessed only through the national vaccination program.
“Ang babala po natin sa mga kababayan natin, huwag po kayo bibili ng bakuna o magpapabakuna sa labas po ng (Our warning to the public, do not purchase or get vaccinated outside the) vaccination program of the government,” FDA Director General Eric Domingo said during a televised Laging Handa public briefing.
While there are no reported fake Covid-19 vaccines in the country yet, Domingo said the FDA is coordinating with the Philippine National Police, the Bureau of Customs, and the National Bureau of Investigation to prevent the entry of counterfeit vaccines.
“Kaya ngayon mayroong simulation exercise mula sa airport hanggang sa storage facility. Kapag dumating na rin po kasi ang genuine o authentic na vaccines, ito rin po ‘yung time na maaaring may sumabay na pekeng vaccines (We have a simulation exercise from the airport up to the storage facility. When the genuine or authentic vaccines arrive, the fake vaccines may come with them) so we have to be very, very careful,” he added.
Domingo also noted that no Covid-19 vaccine worldwide has been granted with marketing authorization.
“Ibig sabihin nito na wala pang vaccine na fully-developed na at maari nang ibenta sa publiko (This means no [Covid-19] vaccine has been fully-developed and allowed to be sold to the public),” he said.
Earlier, the Healthcare Professionals Alliance Against Covid-19 reported that there are private organizations purchasing and offering Covid-19 vaccines to their employees.
Since there would be limited supply of vaccines for the first quarter, the government would strictly implement its priority list for the vaccine distribution, Domingo said.
“Kailangan unahin natin ang mga healthcare workers, ‘yung mga very vulnerable na maaaring mamatay kapag nagkasakit, pero makakaabot naman iyan sa ating lahat. Ang binibili nina Secretary Galvez na bakuna ay halos 150 million at enough po iyon sa 70 percent na population ng Pilipinas (We need to prioritize the healthcare workers, the vulnerable who may die once they get sick, but the vaccine supply will reach all of us. Secretary Galvez is buying almost 150 million [doses] and it’s enough for the 70 percent of the Philippine population),” he added. (PNA)
