Illustrative image (Photo: sggp.org.vn)Hanoi (VNA) – The World Health Organisation
(WHO) and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) have agreed to ensure to support Vietnam’s expanded vaccination programme, Minister of Health Dao Hong Lan has said.
Talking to the press on June 14, Lan referred to the vaccine shortage for
the programme, saying that the situation may increase the risk of disease
outbreaks.
The vaccine against diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis (DTP) for booster shots for children aged 18-24 months is currently out of stock, but DPT vaccine producers have affirmed their readiness
to supply this vaccine immediately to Vietnam once a decision on procurement
and bidding has been made, she said.
Among vaccines for the expanded immunisation programme,
the imported vaccine in shortage for several months is the 5-in-1
vaccine against diphtheria, pertussis, tetanus, hepatitis B and haemophilus
influenzae type b (Hib).
She
attributed the situation to the lack of state budget allocated to the
Ministry of Health for procurement, bidding, and negotiations of vaccine prices.
Over
200,000 doses of the 5-in-1 vaccine pledged by WHO
and , along with over 65,000 doses from domestic donors, are expected
to ensure a sufficient number of vaccines for the programme, Lan said.
These supplies will be prioritised for the immunisation for children in remote
and difficult areas where they find it difficult to access to vaccination services, she
noted.
The MoH has worked with the supervision delegation of the National
Assembly (NA) Standing
Committee on the need for continued allocation
of state budget to enable the ministry to effectively implement the expanded
vaccination programme nationwide, Lan stressed.
With
the support of and UNICEF, the has been
applied in Vietnam since 1981./.
Source: VietnamPlus
