Even students who have not been vaccinated against coronavirus disease (COVID-19), they will be allowed to participate in face-to-face classes amid pandemic, even if they are covered by the vaccine according to the Food and Drug Administration’s emergency use authorization (EUA).
It was only this Wednesday that the DOH said that only children 12-17 years old with comorbidities (illnesses) will be given priority by the government in the COVID-19 vaccination starting October 2021.
“Although meron ho tayong isang sector ng age group diyan sa isasali sa face-to-face, ‘yun pong mga high school… na isasali natin, kakaonti lang naman sila, pero hindi po ‘yan pre-requisite para matuloy ang face-to-face classes,” said Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire, Wednesday.
“Ang kondisyon po ng ating mga experts for the face-to-face is to encourage all of those teachers and non-teaching personnel na sasali dito sa face-to-face classes na dapat bakunado po sila.”
It is said that only five senior high schools will be included in the pilot implementation of face-to-face classes amid the pandemic in “low-risk” areas for COVID-19 within two months.
Vergeire added that most of the participants in the pilot implementation of face-to-face learning in the basic and secondary education sectors will come from those in Kinder to Grade 3, ages where it is strictly forbidden to be vaccinated against COVID-19.
SHS students in face-to-face classes not required to get vaccinated
“Ang atin lang EUA na meron ngayon para sa mga kabataan is EUA for Pfizer and Moderna for 12-17 years old,” the DOH official added.
The diseases that will be covered by the immunization of minors will be based on the list by the Philippine Pediatric Infectious Disease Society of the Philippines. The young COVID-19 survivors are not included here yet.
The DOH added that it may be the middle of next month before the injection of COVID-19 vaccines to children is rolled out.
“Ang sinasabi po ng vaccine cluster, maaaring mag-umpisa sa October 15 [ang pagtuturok],” said Vergeire.
“And sabi nila, baka uumpisahan muan sa isang rehiyon… dito sa [National Capital Region] kasi in place ‘yung ating mga prosesong ito, and then we can roll it out to the other regions.”
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