TOURISM INDUSTRY workers are starting to receive booster shots to bolster their protections in the wake of the spread of the Omicron variant of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), the Department of Tourism (DoT) said.
Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat said in a statement on Wednesday that booster COVID-19 shots are now being administered to tourism workers who had been fully vaccinated around the National Capital Region (NCR) and Boracay Island.
She added that booster shots will also be rolled out for tourism workers in other destinations like Baguio City and Davao.
According to the DoT’s National Capital Region office, 12,693 of 25,385 workers have received COVID-19 booster shots.
The DoT said the National Task Force against COVID-19 has committed to allot 20,000 COVID-19 vaccine doses as booster shots for tourism workers in Boracay Island.
“We are glad to see the willingness of our tourism workers to get vaccinated grow over the past few months. We continue to encourage them to avail of the free vaccine as this is a critical component for the industry to rebound and thrive in the new normal,” Ms. Romulo-Puyat said.
According to the DoT, 282,780 individuals, or 88.38% of the initial target of 325,489 tourism workers, have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19 as of the end of 2021.
It added that 38,931 individuals have yet to receive their first doses.
“The inoculated workers are employed in accommodation establishments temporarily operating as isolation/quarantine facilities, regular hotels, tourism enterprises, tourism support services, and community-based tourism organizations,” Ms. Romulo-Puyat said.
The DoT said vaccination rates in the Cordillera Administrative Region exceeded the target for full coverage, with the initial lineup of 12,019 tourism workers deemed fully protected. Doses were administered to 12,485 workers to include some individuals who had acquired new jobs after the initial count, for a vaccination rate of 104.24%.
“CAR is followed by NCR with 99.8%, or 44,186 of the region’s 44,234 initial target tourism workers,” the DoT said.
“Also registering high rates of vaccination are: Davao Region (99.11%); Central Luzon (98.91%); Northern Mindanao (98.48%); Bicol Region (95.49%); Eastern Visayas (94.04%); Soccsksargen (91.89%); and Central Visayas (90.98%),” it added. — Revin Mikhael D. Ochave
