Isang infectious disease expert ang nagsabing pabor siya na gawing mandatory ang pagbabakuna laban sa coronavirus disease (COVID-19) sa bansa.

“If this will be mandatory, I will really support that,” sabi ni Dr. Rontgene Solante, chief ng Adult Infectious Diseases and Tropical Medicine Unit sa San Lazaro Hospital, sa isang panayam sa ABS-CBN News Channel.

Giit ni Solante, kayang magbigay ng proteksyon laban sa virus ang bakuna.

“Well at this point in time, we know that vaccines can protect us. We know how vaccines can prevent the infection. We have suffered a lot and why are we hesitant? We already have the vaccines, what still do we want? These are the things that we need to balance in order to move on with our life,” sabi niya.

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Bukod sa bakuna, pinaalalahanan din ng infectious disease expert ang publiko na ang pagsunod sa health protocols ay maaari ring magbigay ng dagdag na proteksyon.

Sinabi ni Solante na napakahalaga ng pagsunod sa minimum public health standards lalo na ngayong holiday season.

“We need more information about the Omicron variant of concern. We have to be careful. We have to follow the health protocols…and please don’t engage in unwanted gatherings, even parties at this point in time,” he said.

“We don’t know yet if we have it or not and baka mabulaga nalang tayo na by January mag surge na tayo. That is something that we don’t like to happen, especially for us the healthcare workers, pagod na talaga kami— and we will have this surge again— we don’t know what will happen to us,” he added.

Analou de Vera