The long and winding road
It may be too early to conclude that the Philippines would only be able to reach herd immunity against COVID-19 by the year 2033. But Senator Panfilo Lacson is bold enough to say that the country would hit target immunity only after twelve (12) years from now.
Lacson’s overly simplistic calculation disregards several factors that may help accelerate the government’s vaccination program. It is hoped that the supply issue as the biggest challenge to the program will be resolved in the coming months as the number of vaccine manufacturers and vaccine choices is expected to increase. The production capacity of manufacturers is also seen to hasten the pace of vaccine rollout.
After a year of following health protocols and observing quarantine restrictions, the very foundation of the government-imposed restriction of people’s freedom of movement is now subject to challenge. At the early stage of the pandemic, promotion of public health and the objective to flatten the curve was the strongest motivation why people did not question the government’s action to impose lockdowns and made them follow stay-home orders despite suffering the adverse effects of isolation and lack of work. Now, some groups contemplate on challenging the constitutionality of the IATF and its issuances. The challenge is not only based on legal grounds but also on whether the restrictions are effective in preventing the spread of the virus.
Realizing that the damages caused by nationwide community quarantine and draconian restrictions on the country’s economy far outweigh the benefits of public health, the government allows only granular lockdowns at present. The severely restrictive measures in the past could be justified by the lack of necessary information and tools to fight the novel virus.
Based on the public statements from the national government, the country’s health care system is now better equipped than in the past. Just as the government is set to impose the most lenient quarantine restriction, it is now faced with the rising cases with suspected new variants of the virus. These realities show that we are still faced with a long and winding road in this pandemic and that the most restrictive quarantine measures do not provide a feasible solution to the pandemic.
While herd immunity is still a long way to go, the government must strike the right balance between the right of public in general to be shielded from the scourge of the virus and the right to a means of livelihood.