Philippines earmarks $899 million for Covid-19 booster shots

MANILA: The

Philippines

is allotting 45.3 billion

pesos

($899 million) for Covid-19 booster shots under its 2022 budget, an official said, even as health authorities have yet to conclude there is a need for a third dose.

"We have a budget entry for a booster shot for all Filipinos," presidential spokesman

Harry Roque

told a regular news conference.

It is unclear how many doses of vaccine the budget can cover, but the Philippines has approved the emergency use of eight brands, including those of Pfizer and partner

BioNTech

and Moderna, which the

United States

will start offering as boosters in September.

In recent weeks,

Israel

, France and

Germany

have decided to offer booster shots to older adults and people with weak immune systems.

The Philippines, which is battling one of the worst Covid-19 outbreaks in

Asia

, has fully vaccinated nearly 13 million people, or 11.7% of the total population of 110 million.