All healthcare workers nationwide have received their first dose of the Covid-19 vaccine, Secretary Carlito Galvez Jr., chief implementer of the National Task Force (NTF) against Covid-19, said on Monday.

Galvez, also the country’s vaccine czar, said a total of 1.667 million doses were given to health workers with 1.130 million of them now fully protected against risks of the disease.

“Now that 100 percent of our healthcare workers have received their first vaccine doses, we are confident to complete the vaccination of their priority group soon and open up our vaccine program to other sectors,” Galvez said.

With the increasing volumes of vaccines that are coming into the country, Galvez expects the government would be able to further accelerate and expand the national vaccination program.

“We are working hard to secure more vaccines for our countrymen and ramp up our vaccination drive so that we can realize our goal of achieving population protection and herd immunity within the year,” he said.

The Philippines has already administered about 10.065 million doses of Covid-19 vaccine as of Sunday.

Meanwhile, the Taguig City government announced it will temporarily suspend its vaccination program beginning Monday and will resume until further notice.

“As of 12 noon, June 28, the DOH (Department of Health) has yet to authorize the use of the vaccines we currently have in our cold chain facility; thus the need for cancellation of vaccination schedules,” the city’s advisory reads.

Taguig assured that those who are scheduled for vaccination will be prioritized at the soonest available time.