Filipino seafarers should get priority for receiving single-dose COVID-19 vaccines as international shipping vessels have no fixed schedule and often give joining notices as short as less than a week, a Philippines lawmaker said Sunday.
“While the Maritime Industry Authority (Marina) and manning agencies endorsed single-dose vaccines like of Johnson and Johnson and Gamaleya’s Sputnik V Light for seafarers, whatever 2-dose vaccine is available should be used as we await supply of single-dose vaccine,” Marino Partylist Rep. Macnell Lusotan told media.
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The Philippines will prioritize seafarers and Filipino migrant workers for single-dose vaccines if some nations require certain brands being used, vaccine czar Secretary Carlito Galvez said while urging for WHO (World Health Organization) and UN (United Nations) action on this.
Traditional or cargo seafarers were unaffected by the pandemic but to date, around 50,000 to 100,000 crew members of cruise ships are yet to be deployed. Lusotan further observed that cruise ships are looking forward to ‘smoother waters’ with vaccines.
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Earlier this month, a Filipino seafarer succumbed to the Indian variant of COVID-19 after docking in the Philippines, while another passed away from Covid-19 when his ship was docked in Indonesia.
Filipino seafarers have been classified as part of the sub-group A4 in the country’s list of Covid-19 vaccine priority groups as their work is considered crucial in keeping the economy alive, the Department of Transportation stated. (AW)
