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The Congolese government said on Friday that it would not allow the use of additional experimental vaccines as it fights an Ebola outbreak, as this would "confuse the population."
More than 130,000 people were vaccinated by health workers during the epidemic that lasted nearly a year in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo with an experimental vaccine manufactured by Merck which has proven to be very effective.
But the epidemic, which is the second most serious in history, continues to spread, largely because of the distrust of the people of eastern Congo vis-à-vis the response and armed attacks against health workers with limited access to patients.
"Due to the lack of sufficient scientific evidence on the efficacy and safety of other vaccines and the likelihood of confusion for the population, it was decided that no clinical trials of vaccines would be allowed. […] during the ongoing Ebola outbreak, "said the Ministry of Health in a daily newsletter.
But the government has not ruled out the use of other vaccines in the future, "once their effectiveness has been proven," said Wednesday a government directive to health workers.
In May, experts advising the World Health Organization recommended introducing other vaccines to help secure the latest supply of vaccines and specifically mentioned a new experimental vaccine manufactured by Johnson & Johnson.
The Congolese government said that there was currently no problem supplying Merck vaccine.
The misinformation conveyed by some community leaders in eastern Congo has led people to refuse vaccines or treatments, and the government's fears of using a second vaccine would fuel other conspiracy theories.
More than 2,400 confirmed cases and probable cases have been recorded since the outbreak declaration last August, including more than 1,600 deaths.
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