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HCMC requires vaccine supply for EPI |
In its document on vaccine supply in the Expanded Immunization Program (EPI) to the Ministry of Health, the municipal People's Committee said that the supply of some vaccines including measles, diphtheria - pertussis - tetanus vaccines and 5-in-1 vaccines for EPI in the city was interrupted in 2022 for a certain period of time.
To ensure the vaccine needs of city dwellers, the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee requested the Ministry of Health to support and direct the National Immunization Program to allocate vaccines to the city according to the planned quantity as soon as possible.
Previously, Ho Chi Minh City received 12,400 doses of the 5-in-1 vaccine allocated by the Ministry of Health on August 15. The vaccines were sponsored by international organizations.
However, healthcare workers have administered vaccines according to regulations so far; there were only about 3,000 doses of this vaccine left by October 10. The vaccine will be run out within the next 2 weeks.
Other vaccines in the EPI are only available in very limited quantities. For instance, 2,300 doses of the measles-rubella vaccine are left while there were 660 doses of the measles vaccine, 600 doses of the tetanus vaccine, and 89 doses of the hepatitis B vaccine in hospitals’ stockpiles.
According to the National Institute of Hygiene and Epidemiology, it is expected that it will take until the end of December 2023 at the earliest to have a supply of vaccines including the 5-in-1 vaccine under the EPI.
Currently, the Department of Health directs the City Center for Disease Control to continue to properly coordinate the remaining vaccine sources among districts citywide. Health authorities also instruct grassroots health stations in wards and districts to review and strictly manage the list of children who must be vaccinated for new vaccinations and booster vaccinations so that healthcare workers can administer vaccines as soon as possible when vaccine supply is available again.
