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BANGKOK – The National Health Security Office (NHSO) has received a budget of 54 million baht for the purchase of 100,000 doses of MMR vaccine (measles, mumps and rubella). Doses are expected in August and will not affect the government's national immunization plan.
The Minister of Public Health, Clin. Prof. Piyasakol Sakolsatayadorn, who chairs the NHSO's Board of Directors, said he recognized the importance of protecting the health of the population and preventing the spread of measles by providing MMR shots to people who do not vaccinated in Thailand. The Department of Disease Control, under the Ministry of Public Health, initially requested a budget of 93 million baht for the purchase of MMR vaccine. The Ministry of Finance approved 54 million baht. The NHSO, with the support of Radavavithi Public Hospital, then budgeted 22 million baht for the purchase of 100,000 doses of vaccine.
Following the NHSO Council meeting, the Minister of Public Health announced that the MMR vaccine would be administered in August of this year and that doses would be administered to unvaccinated Thai children under seven years of age and to people living in hospitals. overcrowded environments, such as prisons. , military camps and factories. Clin. Professor Piyasakol added that MMR vaccination will not affect the government's national immunization activities.
In August 2018, the health authorities aim to contain a measles epidemic in the southern provinces of the country, where 14 deaths and more than 1,500 cases were reported.
Thai health officials attributed the return of the disease to a low vaccination rate in the south of the country, caused by misconceptions about the nature of the vaccine among the Muslim population.
Islam prohibits the consumption of pork and vaccine manufacturers sometimes use gelatin derived from pork products as a stabilizer. But health official Vicharn Pawan said Thailand is importing measles vaccines that do not contain pork gelatin.
Recent cases in Thailand's predominantly Muslim southern provinces, which are Buddhist in majority, account for half of the total for the whole country since the beginning of the year.
The number of measles cases in the country has increased in recent years, the Thai Ministry of Health said. Last year, nearly 3,000 cases – without deaths – were reported, compared to just over 1,000 in 2012. According to the World Health Organization, the UN and Japan have also reported outbreaks of measles, while Europe experienced a surge in 2017 with more than 20,000 cases and 35 deaths.
"There is more and more misunderstanding about the vaccinations that are spreading in Muslim communities here. Some said it was against their religion to receive vaccines, while others think it's not safe, "said Anchanee Heemmina, a human rights activist who lives in a southern region. affected country.
According to the Prevention and Control Office of the Thai Ministry of Health, misunderstandings about vaccination have resulted in some areas where only 60% of the population is vaccinated.
According to the World Health Organization, at least 95% of the population must be vaccinated so that a community is considered immune to the spread of the disease, for highly contagious diseases such as measles.
Thai health authorities have posted on their websites messages from local religious leaders urging people to accept vaccines.
A video message from the Central Islamic Council of Thailand explains that even if the vaccines contain items prohibited by religion, the medical benefits for the person and the community will take precedence.
At the same time, health workers go to schools and homes in measles-affected areas to target children under 5 free of charge, also offering them to other vulnerable people. They are also trying to make it known that Islamic religious organizations have agreed to use such vaccines, said Vicharn Pawan, director of the Health Risk and Behavior Communication Bureau of the Ministry of Health.
The resistance has not been overcome. Twenty families from three villages in Yala province refused to be vaccinated. Ten of them have signed an official letter declaring their intention not to be vaccinated in the future, public broadcaster ThaiPBS announced on Monday.
The Yala Public Health Bureau said in a statement that its medical teams will continue to work in the communities to address their concerns.
"We are still facing difficult tasks," Vicharn said. "But health workers will continue to reach out to communities. Even if they refuse the vaccines this time, we will have to continue the visits and continue to convey the message that vaccines are good for the health and the community. "
By Geoff Thomas
Sources: AP, NNT
National Office of Public Health Security
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