SENATOR Christopher “Bong” Go expressed his gratitude to numerous private business entities for coming up with innovative incentive plans for fully vaccinated individuals, such as discounts and freebies.

“Maraming salamat sa mga pribadong kumpanya sa mga pa-discounts at freebies ninyo para sa bakunadong kababayan natin. Malaking bagay ito para ma-engganyo natin ang mas maraming Pilipino magpabakuna,” Go said.

Meanwhile, Go reaffirmed his call for qualified and unvaccinated Filipinos to receive their COVID-19 vaccinations.

He noted that studies show that fully vaccinated individuals have a significantly lower risk of infection and severe illness from COVID-19, and that they should be allowed to participate in certain pre-pandemic activities as long as basic health protocols, such as wearing a mask and face shield and observing social distancing, are followed.

“Sa ngayon po, naging maganda po ang vaccine confidence na tumataas na. Kahit na noong umiikot ako, tinatanong ko sila noong unang panahon 10% lang po ang nagtataas ng kamay, ngayon po halos kalahati na po dahil nakikita nila na protektado sila sa bakuna, lalong-lalo na po ngayon na merong Delta variant na napakabilis ng transmission four times more contagious po ito,” Go noted.

Chair of the Senate Committee on Health, Senator Go has echoed the calls of several business owners and franchisees for government authorities to study the possibility of offering incentives to fully vaccinated individuals in order to encourage more Filipinos, especially those who are still hesitant to get their COVID-19 shots.

“Pag-aralan dapat natin nang mabuti ang pagbibigay ng insentibo sa mga bakunado, tulad ng mas maluwag na mga patakaran na ligtas pa rin. Maaaring pwede sila lumabas, makapagtrabaho at makagalaw nang mas konting restrictions pero compliant pa rin sa minimum health standards,” he said.

“Malaking tulong ito sa ekonomiya at para ma-enganyo at tumaas rin ang vaccine confidence,” suggested Go.

On September 14, more than 1,000 businesses have issued a manifesto lamenting the financial losses and liabilities they have incurred as a result of the national government’s lockdowns.

“Of utmost importance, our employees have families to feed and stable employment is difficult to assure without a clear plan,” it said.

They declared complete support for Presidential Adviser for Entrepreneurship and Go Negosyo founder Joey Concepcion’s proposal for the introduction of the bakuna bubble as a strategy to resuscitate the economy.

COVID-19 restrictions are to be relaxed for fully vaccinated individuals under the proposed bakuna bubble, which will help promote the economy and protect the jobs of many Filipinos.

Go has earlier stated his support for the proposed bakuna bubble as well as other proposals to loosen some of the COVID-19 restrictions for fully vaccinated individuals as long as minimum health standards are still in place.

“Ito pong bubble system, mas magiging successful ito kapag mas marami na ang bakunado. Kaya katulad ng pakiusap ko sa mga kapwa ko Pilipino, kung eligible na kayo, ‘wag kayo matakot at magpabakuna na kayo. Mas maraming bakunado, mas ligtas ang ating mga pamilya at komunidad,” he explained.

As of September 13, the country has already administered a total of 39,142,205 COVID-19 doses. A total of 22,063,529 individuals have been given their first dose while 17,078,676 Filipinos have been fully vaccinated. The country’s daily vaccination rate stands at 395,704 jabs a day as of September 13.

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Bong Go calls for stricter regulations of Electronic Nicotine Delivery Systems

SENATOR Christopher “Bong” Go underscored the need for stronger regulatory oversight of consumer goods, such as vapes and electronic cigarettes, which emit “toxic substances” to protect the public’s health from the harmful effects of their use and initiation.

Go urged the Senate to carefully consider the potential impacts of e-cigarettes on people’s health so evidence-based policies and programs can be developed and put in place during an interpellation with Senate President Pro Tempore Ralph Recto on Senate Bill No. 1951 at the Senate Session on Tuesday, September 14.

“Kapakanan ng bawat Pilipino at ang kalusugan nila ang ating pangunahing konsiderasyon dito. We need regulations against products that may contain or emit potentially toxic substances or highly addictive substances which are harmful to our health,” emphasized Go.

“We should not allow the unregulated use of these products and … (its easy) access by minors. I echo the advice of health experts for the public to refrain from using vapes or e-cigarettes as the knowledge on the products is still limited. Nararapat lang na pag-aralan natin ito ng mabuti,” he cautioned.

Filed in December 2020, Senate Bill No. 1951 or the Vaporized Nicotine Products (VPNs) Regulation Bill seeks to regulate the importation, manufacture, sale, packaging, distribution, use, advertisement, promotion and sponsorship of electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS) with the aim of reducing the harm caused by smoking.

Go, who chairs the Senate Committee on Health, asked the sponsor, Recto, if the bill could entice more Filipinos to be addicted to nicotine since ENDS are viewed as less harmful alternatives, and cited studies which found that ENDS users are more likely to become cigarette smokers.

Go further noted that a recent global systematic review revealed adolescents who use ENDS are more likely to use conventional cigarettes.

Go also warned of the potential dangers associated with these products, recalling an outbreak of electronic cigarette product use-associated lung injuries in the United States in 2019.

“From my own experience and the many literature I have gone through, (ENDS) are not safe products but they are less harmful than conventional cigarettes … The real intention is for those who smoke cigarettes to shift to these products. I think if you started with an ENDS, you will not want to smoke kasi mabaho ‘yung sigarilyo. Ito halos walang amoy,” replied Recto.

Noting Go’s concern on their impact on the youth, Recto reassured that his proposed bill penalizes the physical or online sale of the ENDS products on minors and requires buyers to verify their age. He further expressed his willingness to accept additional safeguards from the committee chair.

On this note, the Senator questioned the sponsor on Section 18 of the bill which gives the Department of Trade and Industry exclusive jurisdiction over vapor products and heated tobacco products (HTPs).

He noted that this is a clear departure from Republic Act No. 11467 which increases the excise tax on e-cigarettes and HTPs, and mandates the Food and Drug Administration to regulate their manufacture, importation, sale, packaging, advertising and distribution.

Recto responded that the FDA has yet to issue any regulatory guideline since the said Act’s enactment in 2020. Recognizing that most e-cigarettes contain nicotine, he explained that he only wants to ensure the consistent implementation of R.A. No. 9211 or the Tobacco Regulation Act of 2003, of which the DTI is the lead implementing agency.

”We’re trying to correct that here by ensuring that all products are regulated properly by the [Inter-Agency Committee-Tobacco] to be headed by the DTI … we don’t have the regulatory environment to begin with. Hindi maliwanag sa batas natin. I don’t think we’ll get it perfectly dahil porous ang borders natin but we should at least try to regulate these products,” said Recto.

When asked about the effectiveness of the Inter-Agency Committee on Tobacco headed by the DTI in regulating conventional tobacco products, Senator Recto said that the IACT has shown some effectivity in regulating tobacco products. He added that the prevalence of tobacco use in the country had dropped from 30% in 2009 to 24% in 2015.

Given these figures, Go commented that the country still has “a long way to go” in enforcing tobacco regulations and that this needs to be taken into consideration in the transfer of regulatory jurisdictions from FDA to DTI.

He added that as the human body absorbs the nicotine from these products and studies have shown they could have negative impacts on one’s health, the FDA should still have a role in regulating vapor products and HTPs.

“Kung pinapasok ang nicotine sa katawan at may mga pag-aaral na maaaring may masamang epekto ang mga ito sa katawan, sa aking palagay po ay dapat may role ang FDA sa pag-regulate nito,” said Go.

Moving on, the Senator thanked Recto for his willingness to consider his proposal to include consultations between the DTI and FDA as a means to enhance the regulatory process.