Resolved measles vaccine shortage for the Expanded Immunization Program

In response to the news that measles vaccines have been interrupted for the past 3 months, at a press briefing on the afternoon of June 17, Dr. Hoang Minh Duc, Director of the Department of Preventive Medicine (Ministry of Health) said that the budget for purchasing vaccines for 2024 will be decided at the end of 2023. Therefore, the unit will only complete the bidding at the end of 2023.

In early January-February 2024, the new vaccine was completed and has been delivered in batches to localities for vaccination from now until October 2024.

Mr. Duc said that so far, Vietnam has received 17/21 million doses of measles vaccine and transferred them to the provincial Centers for Disease Control. From April to June, enough measles vaccine has been provided for expanded immunization, ensuring that each month 7.5% of children are vaccinated against measles.

"The Department of Preventive Medicine has advised the Ministry of Health to review all children nationwide who have not been vaccinated against measles. Localities where children have not received enough doses will organize catch-up vaccinations and catch-up vaccinations to prevent measles outbreaks from increasing," said Mr. Duc.

Measles has increased since the beginning of the year, especially in Ho Chi Minh City, with the number of children who have not been vaccinated increasing alarmingly.

According to the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Health, due to the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic and the interruption of the supply of vaccines in the Expanded Immunization Program in 2022, the vaccination rate has been affected, many children have not been vaccinated on schedule or have not received enough doses.

Since the beginning of 2023, when vaccine supply began to return but was not sufficient, Ho Chi Minh City has implemented a plan to vaccinate, but the coverage rate has not yet met the requirements.

The number of children fully vaccinated with two doses of measles at all ages did not reach 95%, the coverage level needed to create community immunity. In particular, vaccination results in the first months of 2024 showed delays, especially with single measles doses at 9 months of age.

In addition to Ho Chi Minh City, many localities have not yet fully covered the measles vaccination rate for children, and in some places the vaccination rate is low; many parents forget their children's vaccination schedule, miss doses... leading to an increase in the disease.

In 2024, Vietnam is in the 4-5 year cycle of risk of measles outbreak. The World Health Organization warns that the measles vaccination rate in 2023 is still low, if vaccination is not fully implemented, there will be a high risk of an epidemic.

Source: https://nhandan.vn/bo-y-te-da-giai-quyet-tinh-trang-thieu-vaccine-soi-cho-chuong-trinh-tiem-chung-mo-rong-post814751.html