Measles has been reported in 43 out of 64 provinces and cities nationwide with 664 patients since early this month, particularly in the south, according to the Ministry of Health.
Thirty-two cases of measles were recorded in Hanoi in the first three weeks of 2019, mostly children who are under five years old and have not been fully vaccinated.
Health centres in Ho Chi Minh City are working to verify how many children aged one to five have not been immunised against measles for a national campaign to provide free two-in-one vaccines against measles and rubella starting this month.
The Ministry of Health has issued a decision approving a plan to give additional measles-rubella (MR) vaccine shots to children in the 1-5 age group in the 2018-2019 period.
Vietnam will use three new vaccines in the national expanded vaccination programme (NEVP) this year, heard a workshop held by the Ministry of Health (MoH) on April 16.
Some 2.5 million doses of high quality combined measles-rubella vaccine will be used in the expanded national immunisation programme, replacing imported vaccines from India in the next 6 months
The measles-rubella vaccine (MR) produced by Vietnam, which was clinically tested and proven safe and effective, will be used in the National Expanded Programme on Immunisation free of charge in 2017.
Vietnam has successfully produced a combined measles-rubella vaccine as part of a project with co-operation from the Japan International Co-operation Agency (JICA).
Vietnam is facing a high risk of summer-related diseases such as flu, diarrhea, dengue fever, chicken-pox, rubella and meningitis, due to poor hygiene and unfavourable weather conditions.
The central province of Binh Thuan next month will launch a measles–rubella vaccination programme for about 43,400 people aged 16-17 in 10 districts in the locality.
The southern province of Ba Ria-Vung Tau has recently launched a campaign to give the measles–rubella vaccination to juveniles aged 16-17 in the locality.
Ho Chi Minh City from next month will implement a campaign to give the measles–rubella vaccination to about 124,000 people aged 16-17 from 24 districts in the city.
The southern city of Ho Chi Minh aims to control the number of infectious disease cases while increasing prevention and the capacity to fight disease in 2016.
Six-in-one vaccines aren't available and the shortage should last until next year, Ministry of Health's Preventive Medicine Department Head Tran Dac Phu said on August 4.
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