DOH to assess need to procure new COVID-19 monovalent XBB jabs

The Department of Health (DOH) will assess whether or not there is a need to procure the new COVID-19 monovalent vaccines specifically targeting the Omicron XBB subvariant, Health Secretary Ted Herbosa said Tuesday.

At a Palace briefing, Herbosa said they will await the recommendation of the World Health Organization (WHO) and will observe what the other countries will do regarding the new vaccine.

“Apparently, what was discovered was the bivalent isn’t as effective because the bivalent also increases your antibodies to the original, not the later ones. So, parang 70% of the antibodies are triggered or still the older ones. So, in that case, it doesn’t really protect you from the newer variant. So, they changed again their formula and created the monovalent  XBB,” he said.

Currently listed under WHO’s circulating variants of interest are the XBB.1.5, XBB.1.16, and EG.5. Meanwhile, DV.7, XBB, XBB.1.9.1, XBB.1.9.2, XBB.2.3, and BA.2.86 are tagged as variants under monitoring.

The DOH earlier allowed administering more than 390,000 doses of bivalent vaccines donated by Lithuania to healthcare workers (A1), senior citizens (A2), and adults with comorbidities (A3).

Herbosa said these doses were already depleted, hoping that the priority groups were able to get the COVID-19 jabs while they were available for free.

“We’ve consumed all our bivalent, actually, the 390,000 that we have. We are just hoping that the fact that most Filipinos are completely vaccinated for COVID, symptoms will be mild and this new variety is also like upper respiratory mild infection. So, we will watch it,” he said.

It was in September when the DOH announced that the country’s supply of COVID-19 monovalent and bivalent vaccines was almost exhausted, stressing that they would no longer procure additional doses to cater to those who have not yet completed their primary vaccine series or were not vaccinated at all.—AOL, GMA Integrated News