donating 50% of the vaccines purchased to the government.

[finaleshot2016]

When the government asked for money from the ADB Asian Development Bank to purchase COVID-19 vaccines, I found it odd that they were still demanding so much from private companies in my country. We know that people are without a source of income and that businesses are closed due to lockdowns, implying that they aren't making much money from the current pandemic. Now, some private companies are attempting to vaccinate their employees by importing vaccines that are much cheaper but there is a protocol requiring them to donate 50% of the vaccine purchased to the government.  

I also discovered that vaccines sold in this country are twice as expensive as those sold in other nations and that vaccines purchased by local governments would be given to governments in order to target areas with a large number of cases. Well, there's nothing wrong with prioritizing high-risk areas in order to reduce the country's active cases, but I'm also curious about how they want to use the ADB's $400 million vaccine loan. We are falling behind in the SEA since other countries' vaccine programs began a long time ago, while ours, not implemented and resulted in a slew of nonsense conditions that will keep the country behind in vaccination. Take notice that daily cases are approaching 10,000, placing us in the top two categories for most cases in Southeast Asia, and we are currently under ECQ (Enhanced Community Quarantine) for the third time, I believe.

Is there any other country that has enacted a similar mandate?

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[TheNineClub]

To be honest, Dutertes response to COVID has been long criticized, and so has been his ruling of the country, so I am really not surprised that they are forcing privately-owned companies to donate half of the vaccines to the government. It seems that he wants to dip his toes in both pools with extracting money from the ADB and extorting companies. But when you are that type of autocrat, anything goes.

[meanwords]

Now, some private companies are attempting to vaccinate their employees by importing vaccines that are much cheaper but there is a protocol requiring them to donate 50% of the vaccine purchased to the government.  

Their target is most likely big companies who has more than enough to pay for the vaccination of their employees. It's those companies who can afford vaccinations anyway. Most companies will likely wait for free vaccination. Maybe $400 million still isn't enough for the whole population? so that's probably why they are still demanding more from large companies.

I also discovered that vaccines sold in this country are twice as expensive as those sold in other nations

Are you talking about AstraZeneca? I think it's not only the Philippines who is suffering from double the price, other countries are too (like bangladesh, south africa, etc). Probably because richer countries are hoarding them. AstraZeneca is being made in the UK so it's much cheaper in there.

We are falling behind in the SEA since other countries' vaccine programs began a long time ago, while ours, not implemented and resulted in a slew of nonsense conditions that will keep the country behind in vaccination. Take notice that daily cases are approaching 10,000, placing us in the top two categories for most cases in Southeast Asia, and we are currently under ECQ (Enhanced Community Quarantine) for the third time, I believe.

I think we already passed 10k already. I don't know what's happening but it also doesn't make sense for me that the covid cases are increasing daily instead of decreasing even though we already have vaccines available. Why are out government so slow in rolling it out? We're basically evolving, just backwards.

[Renampun]

To be honest, Dutertes response to COVID has been long criticized, and so has been his ruling of the country, so I am really not surprised that they are forcing privately-owned companies to donate half of the vaccines to the government. It seems that he wants to dip his toes in both pools with extracting money from the ADB and extorting companies. But when you are that type of autocrat, anything goes.

I don't follow political news in the Philippines...
But I do agree with you that Duterte's leadership has been criticized for a long time and he doesn't care about it like that. forcing private companies to donate vaccine funds looks like indirect blackmail and is likely to make things worse there.

[Gozie51]

A deeper look at the vaccination and the countries that have access to it is more political. Vaccination isn't suppose to have any business with private individuals but we have seen this kind of news happening. It doesn't show seriousness and some countries are being lockdown yet vaccination is slowed down from reaching the places. In Nigeria, it has also been political as officials find themselves as first to receive.

[Fortify]

I think it's important to remember that nobody is safe until everybody is safe when it comes to vaccines. The sooner we can come up with a solution that will get the vast majority of the worlds population protected, the better. The longer it takes, the more chance there will be for mutations that can evade the vaccines but this is minimized if everyone can defend against the current virus and the transmission rate falls. It is almost insignificant to talk about the costs and who should pay - every government should want every eligible citizen to get vaccinated and educate them why it is necessary. That way we can get back to some semblance of life like we had before the pandemic - frankly I look forward to being able to travel again with minimal restrictions.

[Raflesia]

I don't really think about politics in my country, but what I know is that there is nothing in the word blackmail to private companies about having to donate to the government just for vaccinations, what is clear is that the government is now doing millions of vaccines to citizens, especially in government employees. certainly as long as the government can deal with vaccines and for those who can self-isolate it will be better than the vaccines that have to pay, so indeed in dealing with this kind of thing it is different in each country how their financial condition is, which is clear if only on private companies is not a problem because the government also has the authority in that matter.

[oHnK]

I don't really pay attention to the policies taken by my country's government in Covid 19. However, if you apply the same thing to private companies, it is not that bad.  My country received a loan for handling covid.  But allocated to where I also did not get the official details.  The fact is, in my country the people don't really care about Covid and what the public thinks.  Sick and die is the absolute wholeness of God.  So they only take refuge behind the faith in God without using their minds to try.

[YOSHIE]

Every country has a different way to buy a covid-19 vaccine, for its citizens which can be used for free.
Our country currently has vaccinated around 15% for people in government levels, especially in the health sector.

As for the budget used, there are several target forms of funds that will be used to buy vaccinations.
• (Ministry of Health and Health Social Security) is a factor in the source of funds to buy vaccines.
• (State revenue budget) is also a source of funds that can be taken to buy vaccines.
• (Economic recovery budget) is also a source of funds that will be used to buy vaccines.

For now, there are no loan directions to certain banks in the vaccine purchasing program, these funds have been prepared since late 2020, from new data for this year 2021 all vaccines are available and ready to be used for the people.
All vaccines that enter and will be used, including for the private sector, will be covered by the government.


The $1.5 billion fund offered by ADB for my country, there is no decision yet, whether the funds will be taken or not in the covid-19 vaccine purchase program, but the ADB has agreed.

[Fesatmas]

state treasury funds have access to pay for funds spent on vaccination costs. however, we all know that apart from the incidents that make all Southeast Asian countries grieve, there are always parties who do not want to be harmed.

Regarding the Philippines, which tells every private company to be able to help pay for vaccines, I am not clear about it. however, as far as I know, the vaccination program is organized based on the request of the hospital which should be borne by the minister of health. as stated in the health regulations in the Philippines. and it is a constitutionally legitimate responsibility.

however, the health minister and Duterte did not want to be harmed by this sizable expenditure, so that they looked to a number of private companies to make contributions to maintain and stabilize all working employees.

So far there has been no further report on whether the stipulated funds will be reduced in accordance with the capacity of private companies and public companies that have a percentage share of the funds for the vaccination program.

[Hydrogen]

Is there any other country that has enacted a similar mandate?

The USA initially utilized hydroxychloroquine as an affordable treatment. Then reduced support for hydroxychloroquine in favor of remdesivir which is approximately 100x times more expensive than hydroxychloroquine per dosage (and some say far less effective as well). Donald Trump abandoning hydroxychloroquine in favor of remdesivir and regeneron anti viral cocktail is one legitimate criticism that could be made on his Presidency. For some strange reason, the criticism is never made.

One neglected aspect of corona vaccines is some sources have claimed they're only effective for 6 months maximum. Whatever the cost of a single vaccine dose, multiply it by 2 to calculate coverage over a 12 month period. With the long term cost being significantly greater as well. Such might represent a worst case scenario in terms of price. But there have been other concerns involving blood clots and other health issues. Sometimes the cure is worse than the disease. I wonder if COVID vaccines could fit that description.

For similar mandates, the US government said it would fix healthcare through the affordable care act which forced businesses to provide healthcare for employees. The state said it would begin testing for corona during the pandemic before forcing corporations like walmart and target to do all the testing for them. The trend of governments claiming to fix problems while forcing the burden squarely on the shoulders of businesses and the private sector may have become normalized long ago.

[Kong Hey Pakboy]

state treasury funds have access to pay for funds spent on vaccination costs. however, we all know that apart from the incidents that make all Southeast Asian countries grieve, there are always parties who do not want to be harmed.

Regarding the Philippines, which tells every private company to be able to help pay for vaccines, I am not clear about it. however, as far as I know, the vaccination program is organized based on the request of the hospital which should be borne by the minister of health. as stated in the health regulations in the Philippines. and it is a constitutionally legitimate responsibility.

however, the health minister and Duterte did not want to be harmed by this sizable expenditure, so that they looked to a number of private companies to make contributions to maintain and stabilize all working employees.

So far there has been no further report on whether the stipulated funds will be reduced in accordance with the capacity of private companies and public companies that have a percentage share of the funds for the vaccination program.

The reason that they ask for private companies for the vaccination is because the government is too retarded to run the country, they have to worry about their political opponents before doing any pandemic measures and they are using the same 2020 method for this year knowing that it doesn't work anyway, and most of the money that should've been used for the vaccines was wasted on other expenditures. And the health minister is the reason why the vaccine rollout in Philippines is going to be late because he is stupid enough to not check the paperwork for vaccine applications.

[Ucy]

Seems the government is putting too much faith in the vaccines, and even willing to borrow to get them. 
Well, I wish things like that (not the harmful or unsafe ones) could be traded for something else like products/services in form of Bartering between Countries and companies. I would have recommended making them free if millions of lives depend on the vaccines, but I don't expect them to be given completely free without hidden/unpleasant conditions or agenda.

[stompix]

Their target is most likely big companies who has more than enough to pay for the vaccination of their employees. It's those companies who can afford vaccinations anyway. Most companies will likely wait for free vaccination. Maybe $400 million still isn't enough for the whole population? so that's probably why they are still demanding more from large companies.

Yeah, put pressure on the companies that were basically making the job of the government easier and relieving much of the pressure so that they will simply stop vaccinating their employees and the government will have to pay twice as much, the golden goose story never gets old.

Are you talking about AstraZeneca? I think it's not only the Philippines who is suffering from double the price, other countries are too (like bangladesh, south africa, etc). Probably because richer countries are hoarding them. AstraZeneca is being made in the UK so it's much cheaper in there.

The richer country pays more because they afford and they want, this is how things have worked from the start of the human economy, the US and EU have poured billions in research for the vaccine, wouldn't be normal that the ones that did this to get the vaccine first?
Yes, people are dying all over the world from this but how could you explain to somebody in Europe that although we have funded all that research people in my country should get vaccinated after the ones who haven't contributed one penny? Would that be fair?

I also discovered that vaccines sold in this country are twice as expensive as those sold in other nations and that vaccines purchased by local governments would be given to governments in order to target areas with a large number of cases.

Hungary managed to do a stupid stunt for political reasons that backfired too
https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/11/world/hungary-sinopharm-covid.html

[davis196]

If the vaccines bought by the government in your country are more expensive than usual,there might be corruption involved.Some politicians and government clerks will put a large amount of money in their pockets.
Private companies donating 50% of vaccines that they have purchased to the government?This is the most ridiculous rule I have ever seen.If this is required by the law,then it can't be considered a "donation".
This is more like a "vaccine tax",rather than a donation.Countries with corrupt governments will have a hard time dealing with the pandemic.

[Febo]

Donating 50% of the vaccines purchased to the government.

Countries are trying to get as much vaccines as they can. No country wants to stay with less then 70% vaccinated before autumn. But many countries will be such. 3rd wave that is happening right now will be hard. But to then also be hit hard with 4th wave in autumn will be devastating. 

[Fesatmas]

The reason that they ask for private companies for the vaccination is because the government is too retarded to run the country, they have to worry about their political opponents before doing any pandemic measures and they are using the same 2020 method for this year knowing that it doesn't work anyway, and most of the money that should've been used for the vaccines was wasted on other expenditures. And the health minister is the reason why the vaccine rollout in Philippines is going to be late because he is stupid enough to not check the paperwork for vaccine applications.

therefore, in carrying out the vaccination program they either take from China or use vaccines that are intentionally sent from England. what we need to emphasize is that the government should not be too burdensome for private companies. with the exception of private workers have great popularity in the Philippines. meanwhile, the annual disbursement of funds exceeds the expenditure when there is urgent need to pay for vaccines from private companies.
In this regard, the policies Duterte should have implemented are still one-sided.
I hope that the minister of health in the Philippines must be able to act decisively and make decisions on the amount of funds that will be charged to each public and private company based on the level of popularity and annual income.

[sana54210]

I also discovered that vaccines sold in this country are twice as expensive as those sold in other nations and that vaccines purchased by local governments would be given to governments in order to target areas with a large number of cases. Well, there's nothing wrong with prioritizing high-risk areas in order to reduce the country's active cases, but I'm also curious about how they want to use the ADB's $400 million vaccine loan. We are falling behind in the SEA since other countries' vaccine programs began a long time ago, while ours, not implemented and resulted in a slew of nonsense conditions that will keep the country behind in vaccination. Take notice that daily cases are approaching 10,000, placing us in the top two categories for most cases in Southeast Asia, and we are currently under ECQ (Enhanced Community Quarantine) for the third time, I believe.

Is there any other country that has enacted a similar mandate?

I think there is a finance in play as well. Pay tens of billions of dollars to build more places to build this vaccine and you are going to get excess amount of it, literally so many vaccinations that there will be 100+ billion of those by the end of the year. Which would be more than enough to vaccine people twice which is required amount, and even double that just in case. However vaccination has another layer of problem, actually doing it.

There are two problems with it, one of them is the biggest problem which is there is a limited amount of people who can do this, sure the number is high enough and we can do more but it is going to have a limit, we can't just vaccinate everyone on the same day, there will be lines for miles, so we spread it to days, but we could still get faster. Second one is the idiots who do not want to get vaccinated, and I don't know what to do with those.

[just_Alice]

That's so wrong. The governments should be worried about the health of their nation and give vaccines for free (and many civilized countries do so). What are we paying the taxes for? And, surprisingly, in countries where the economics is fine (because the government uses taxes properly and doesn't steal from people) and people can afford the vaccine easily - they still give it for free, because it is their responsibility and, once again, we are paying for it! There should be government reserves for such situations. But instead, not only they decide to sell it at a high price but also cheats by double-dipping. That is very irresponsible.

[Noctis Connor]

To be honest, Dutertes response to COVID has been long criticized, and so has been his ruling of the country, so I am really not surprised that they are forcing privately-owned companies to donate half of the vaccines to the government. It seems that he wants to dip his toes in both pools with extracting money from the ADB and extorting companies. But when you are that type of autocrat, anything goes.

Let's say only those front liner who really volunteered to get vaccinated are the ones done, people in the Philippines are hard headed they think that vaccine can make people to suffer more because of the social media already destroyed their minds if they knew the real story behind it maybe they will support it. The question is why people have a change of heart ? What they having doubt of the vaccine even they already knew that other countries are trying to donate some of there money just to have us a vaccine that can help those people who really are in need. They need to unite as one set aside about the politics and make a good plan for their own people.