A child gets free vaccination against measles, rubella, and polio at a Mobile Bus Vaccine Clinic at Barangay Holy Spirit in Quezon City, during a mass vaccination campaign led by the Philippine Red Cross on Saturday, Feb. 6, 2021. (File photo by NIÑO JESUS ORBETA / Philippine Daily Inquirer)
MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Health (DOH) on Wednesday said it would extend its nationwide supplemental immunization campaign against measles, rubella, and polio to June 15.
The drive — “Chikiting Ligtas 2023” — was originally set to take place in the entire month of May to avert outbreaks of vaccine-preventable diseases — specifically measles, rubella, and polio in children.
The DOH launched the drive after a Unicef report showed a 25% decline in the public perception of the importance of vaccines for children during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The DOH stressed how vaccination could affect the country’s public health, especially in fighting measles and polio.
Over 9.7M vaccinated so far
Based on the latest data sent by the DOH to reporters, over 9.7 million children have already been vaccinated in the drive as of May 30.
A total of 7,541,865 — or 77.72% — of the target eligible children have already been vaccinated against measles and rubella, while 2,188,891 — or 67.87% — of the target have been vaccinated against polio.
The DOH said that it had also successfully distributed a total of 3,600,773 Vitamin A supplements to children.