Former presidential adviser for entrepreneurship Joey Concepcion said the private sector could lose up to P5.1 billion due to the expiration of more than four million Covid-19 vaccine doses.
In a statement, the Go Negosyo founder said 4,252,830 vaccine doses will have expired by July 31.
Concepcion blamed the Department of Health (DOH) and the Health Technology Assessment Council’s (HTAC) “belated decision” to expand the age group eligible for second booster shots to the non-utilization of the expired doses.
“The lack of urgency on the part of the HTAC and the DOH at which the vaccination advisories, policies, and implementation progressed caused the bulk disposal of these hard-earned Covid-19 vaccines,” Concepcion said.
Concepcion has long been urging the government to require booster shots to address waning vaccine demand and efficacy.
Aside from the vaccines procured by the private sector, some of the government’s vaccines could have also expired in the same period, Concepcion said.
“The expiry dates of these vaccines have already been extended and there is nothing more that can be done but to accept this preventable loss,” he said. John Ezekiel J. Hirro