While other countries have recommended the mixing and matching of Covid-19 doses, it is not the time for the country to follow suit, an official of the Department of Health (DOH) said.
DOH spokesperson Maria Rosario Vergeire said the department was waiting for more evidence to support the mixing and matching of Covid-19 vaccines, which was expected to be available in the third quarter.
“Kami po ay nakipagpulong sa mga ating eksperto kung saan ang sinabi po nila ay prudent for our government to delay ito pong mixing and matching,” Vergeire said during the Laging Handa government briefing on July 3.
Vergaire’s remarks came after study by the University of Oxford that found that mixing and matching the Pfizer and Astrazeneca vaccines induced a stronger immune response against Covid-19.
There are different types of vaccines. Sinovac’s CoronaVac uses an inactive form of the Covid-19 virus, while Pfizer and Moderna are mRNA or messenger RNA vaccines. Both types of vaccines meant to induce an immune response to the virus.
Vergeire said the safest way to mix and match was to use vaccines of the same platform or type. Dominic Emanuel Apolona