Israel gives Filipinos COVID-19 vaccine for free regardless of travel status

Around 30,000 Filipinos regardless of their immigration status were given free Covid-19 vaccines by the government of Israel, its embassy in Manila said Wednesday.

Those who received the first dose of Pfizer vaccines were Filipino caregivers, 400 agriculture students, and the staff of the Philippine Embassy in Israel.

Filipinos with expired working permits were also given vaccine shots, free of charge.

"As part of the successful vaccination campaign, Israel’s Ministry of Health (MOH) has vaccinated for free anyone who is in Israel, regardless of their citizenship status or whether or not they have insurance," the embassy said in a statement.

Free access to COVID-19 vaccine, Israeli Ambassador to the Philippines Rafael Harpaz said, is a way of showing gratitude to Filipino workers for their significant contribution to Israel and ensuring their health and safety.

“Israel is thankful for the Filipino caregivers for helping the elderly and the disabled Israeli citizens during the COVID-19 outbreak. For many years, the Israeli government has been providing the Filipino caregivers with full access to the advanced medical services of our country,” Harpaz said.

Israel is currently leading the world in COVID-19 vaccination. With a population of 9.3 million, Israel has already vaccinated (at least with one dose) 5.2 million people, more than half of its inhabitants.

About 4.2 million have received both shots of the Pfizer vaccine in the country.

Harpaz said Israel is committed to ensuring protection of Filipino workers, citing the historic visit of President Rodrigo Duterte to the country in 2018 where the government of Israel signed an agreement with the Philippine government to regulate the working conditions of expatriates. 

“Israel always took good care of the Filipino caregivers, and especially during this pandemic,” the envoy said.

Since the outbreak in 2020 of the deadly respiratory disease, which was first detected in China's Wuhan province,  Israel has granted assistance to the Philippines to help its fight against COVID-19, Harpaz said.

Israeli, he said, turned over several donations consisting of personal protective equipment to the Department of National Defense and the Philippine National Police for use of their frontliners.

Education equipment were also provided to the Department of Education to aid distance learning.

Israel also continues to share its experience and knowledge in emergency and pandemic response with the Philippines through webinars, courses, and joint meetings, Harpaz said. —LBG, GMA News