National Task Force (NTF) against Covid-19 chief Secretary Carlito Galvez Jr. called on local government units (LGUs) to scale up their vaccination rates as more jabs will be delivered in the coming weeks.

He encouraged LGUs to be creative and coordinate with the military, stakeholders, and the private sector.

“You can use malls, hospitals, sports centers, and you can use any facility as a vaccination center,” Galvez said in a statement on Saturday, addressing LGU officials.

On Friday, the government began the pilot run of vaccination of the 15 to 17 age group with comorbidities in eight hospitals in the National Capital Region (NCR).

The Philippine Children’s Medical Center, National Children’s Hospital, Philippine Heart Center, Pasig City Children’s Hospital, Fe Del Mundo Medical Center, Philippine General Hospital, St. Luke’s Medical Center Taguig, and Makati Medical Center were given 1,700 doses each of the Pfizer and Moderna jabs.

“The vaccination for children with comorbidities or those under the Pediatric A3 category will be conducted in a safe, phased, sequential, and monitored manner in line with the recalibrated vaccination plan,” Galvez said.

He noted the country has 37 million doses remaining in its stockpile and “supply is no longer a problem”.

The government targets to inoculate at least 70 million Filipinos to achieve population protection against Covid-19. (PNA)