Some 43,678 frontliners in Bohol have been included in the province’s priority list for its mass vaccination against COVID-19 with the lion’s share of the jab allocation going to over 32,000 barangay health workers.

According to Bohol Inter-Agency Task Force spokesperson Dr. Yul Lopez, the list has been submitted to national health authorities as the province’s first batch of priority vaccine recipients.

“Ato na ning gitaho sa kaulohan ug sa region mao ni ang atong gi-expect na gidaghanon sa bakuhanan sa unang lista sa first priority,” Lopez said.

On top of the priority list are the province’s 6,362 health workers both in public and private health facilities.

Lopez said they also allocated vaccines for 2,565 employees of rural health units, City Health Office, Provincial Health Office, Department of Health (DOH) Bohol and the province’s contact-tracing team.

Local offices of other national government agencies such the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) and Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) were earmarked vaccines for 1,990 people.

“Apil pud ni sila kining ga atubang sa mga nananguli,” said Lopez, pertaining to PCG and BFP employees who oversee entry and carry out disinfection in the province’s airport and seaports.

Senior citizens will follow as the second batch of priority persons for the vaccination drive.

“Gakamulo og master-listing karon sa mga kalungsoran, mauna ang mga indigent senior citizens ug isunod ang uban,” he added.

The first vaccinations were conducted in Bohol last Saturday at the Governor Celestino Gallares Memorial Hospital (GCGMH) in Tagbilaran City.

The DOH-run hospital was allocated over 2,000 vaccine doses by the national government considering that it is the province’s only level three designated COVID-19 referral facility. (A. Doydora)