Proposed mega vaccination site in Nayong Pilipino to be patterned after centers in US
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 11)— The proposed mega vaccination site at the Nayong Pilipino grounds in Parañaque City will be patterned after large inoculation centers established in the United States, according to ICTSI chairman and president Enrique Razon, Jr.
In an exclusive interview with CNN Philippines on Tuesday, Razon said the vaccination hub being planned in the area will feature drive-thru services and medical stations similar to centers in other countries.
"We patterned this on all the large vaccination centers that we've studied in the United States," Razon told News.PH.
"You need to process people, we need reception, we need inoculation, and we need the observation area where you have to spend 15 minutes to see if there are any side effects," he added.
Razon said the vaccination center aims to inoculate about 8,000 to 12,000 people daily.
Last month, the country's pandemic task force approved the proposal for the mega facility's construction at the Nayong Pilipino. But site works have not commenced, as the Nayong Pilipino Foundation's board has yet to sign a memorandum of agreement with the national task force.
The NPF had raised environmental concerns, noting in particular that the cutting of hundreds of trees will destroy the existing ecosystem and negatively impact Metro Manila residents. The board likewise raised possible health risks for people set to receive vaccines, since a quarantine facility is also located at the Nayong Pilipino.
Razon meanwhile defended the project.
"We need to vaccinate the people to be able to open the economy," the tycoon said. "At the rate the vaccinations are going, it will take years to obtain herd immunity. We cannot wait years. We have to do this now."
"It's not a crisis of ipil-ipil trees…but this is a health crisis. People are dying every day," he added.
