Negros Occidental and Bacolod City will enforce the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID) order requiring fully vaccinated close contacts of probable or confirmed COVID-19 cases to be quarantined for 14 days instead of seven.
The IATF-EID suspended the shortened quarantine period for fully vaccinated close contacts amid the threat of the COVID-19 Delta variant.
Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson said Thursday, August 12, that Negros Occidental will implement the IATF order.
Provincial Administrator Rayfrando Diaz said they cannot treat fully vaccinate individuals differently.
Vaccines do not give 100 percent protection from COVID-19 but they will ensure that one is not severely affected by the virus, and will not be hospitalized and die, Diaz said.
Bacolod City will also enforce the new IATF order, which is being implemented amid the Delta variant threat, City Administrator Em Ang said.
Negros Occidental began the rollout of its Moderna vaccines to towns and cities of Negros Occidental Thursday, Diaz said.
The instruction to the local governments is to administer the Moderna vaccines on senior citizens who belong to the A-2 category because that is where they are lagging behind.
Once they hit their A2 target they can proceed to the economic frontliners who belonging to the A4 category, he said.
Bacolod City will also begin the rollout of its 15,000 doses of Moderna vaccines next week after it uses up its remaining 25,000 doses of Sinovac vaccines this week, Ang said.
This is because they are practicing the first in first out rule in the use of the vaccines, she said.
She said the Department of Health has reminded local government units to vaccinate vulnerable groups first, especially the senior citizens and persons with comorbidities. They are also vaccinating overseas Filipino workers, Ang said.
AstraZeneca is set to deliver 35,000 doses of its vaccines purchased by the Bacolod City government this month, she added.*