Philippine health care worker hopes COVID-19 vaccines will revive overseas job dream

By Adrian Portugal
MANILA, Nov 23 (Reuters) - Philippine health care worker
Vince Umali received a blow when the coronavirus pandemic
derailed his plan to work in Canada this year, but he hopes to
revive his dream of an overseas job after breakthroughs in the
race to develop COVID-19 vaccines.
Thousands of health care workers usually leave the country
each year in search of better-paid jobs in countries like the
United States and Canada, as well as in the Middle East.
But in April the government barred nurses, doctors and other
medical workers from leaving, saying they were needed to fight a
coronavirus crisis at home.
"I hope the vaccine could be released by the first quarter
of next year so my plan of being able to work abroad would be
more feasible," said Umali, 26, who works as an occupational
therapist in a private hospital.
Sparking global hope, pharmaceutical company Pfizer Inc has
applied to U.S. health regulators for emergency use
authorization after final trials showed its vaccine candidate
was 95% effective in preventing COVID-19, the disease caused by
the novel coronavirus.
The Philippine Ambassador to the United States Jose
Romualdez said Pfizer had assured supply of its vaccine to his
country once approved for distribution.
Moderna Inc is expected to be the next company to seek a
U.S. emergency use nod for a COVID-19 vaccine after similarly
encouraging results of late-stage trials.
"It is very nice to know, even if technically the virus is
still there, at least moving from one place to another or one
country to another would be much easier," said Umali.
President Rodrigo Duterte has ended the overseas travel ban
for Philippine health workers, the labour minister said on
Saturday, renewing the hopes of workers, although only 5,000
will be allowed to leave each year. For Umali, the lure of working overseas is clear.
Working at home means an eight-to-nine-hour day for 20,000
pesos ($414) a month, while in Canada he said he could get paid
get paid up to C$60 ($45) an hour for a six-to-seven-hour day.


(Writing by Ed Davies; Editing by Christian Schmollinger)