Over 27,000 Bicol kids receive polio vaccine

LEGAZPI CITY –– The Department of Health (DOH) vaccination campaign against polio in Bicol went on full gear as over 27,000 children have been vaccinated during the last six months of this year.

Dr. Monrey Mancilla, DOH Immunization Program chief, in an interview, said immunization coverage has already reached “40 percent (27,193) of our target coverage of 67,984 of children aged 0 to 5 years.”

“So far, there are no reported polio victims in Bicol,” Mancilla said.

Mancilla, quoting a DOH central office report, said a third polio case, that of a four-year-old child, was reported in Maguindanao province. She said the patient suffered acute flaccid paralysis after failing to receive a dose of oral polio vaccine.

“I urge all parents and guardians to have their children undergo immunization to protect them against diseases,” Mancilla said. /lzb