The provincial government of Ilocos Norte looks forward to inoculating over a thousand residents here per day to speed up the process now that more coronavirus vaccines are set to arrive on Thursday.
Dr. Norman Rabago, Ilocos Norte vaccination head, confirmed this on Monday as he reported the spacious Divine Word College of Laoag (DWCL) here will be converted as a temporary mega vaccination center for the entire province starting this week.
“We have visited this morning the DWCL and the Society of the Divine Word Fathers had already approved and agreed to it. We will prioritize Laoag City since it has the most number of cases,” said Rabago as the Provincial Health Task Force aims to vaccinate 1,000 to 1,200 individuals daily from A1 to A4 categories as soon as the vaccines arrive on Thursday courtesy of the Department of Health in addition to the provincial government-procured AstraZeneca vaccine.
Over the past three weeks, this city has recorded a “very high” incidence rate or average daily attack rate at 40.03 cases per 100,000 population.
This was documented by the OCTA Research Group citing Laoag City as one of the most infectious cities for coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) at 2.07 percent, followed by Mariveles at 1.83 percent, Lapu-Lapu City at 1.62 percent, and Cebu City at 1.40 percent.
According to Rabago, they have expected a surge in Covid-19 cases here being considered as the center of the economy.
As the province continues its vaccination rollout, Ilocos Norte Governor Matthew Joseph Manotoc appealed to all residents on Monday to take into heart the safety protocols rather than pointing fingers at who is to blame.
“We have hit the tipping point. We are under a social and behavioral crisis that can not be solved with policies. I hope we all do our part to protect one another,” said Manotoc.
Though the Provincial Health Task Force has yet to confirm if the more contagious Delta variant has already reached the province, Rabago said they continue to strategize and implement measures such as extending the quarantine of confirmed infected individuals from 14 to 21 days.
As of July 18, Ilocos Norte has logged 1,263 active cases, bringing the total number of cases to 5,315 with 98 deaths since the start of the pandemic last year.
Source: Philippines News Agency
