No more worrying about "begging" for vaccines when there's an epidemic.
According to Dr. Duong Chi Nam, Deputy Director of the Department of Disease Prevention, Ministry of Health , in light of the reality of emerging and re-emerging diseases with a high risk of spreading rapidly in the context of changing viruses and pathogens, the Law on Disease Prevention has new regulations aimed at expanding access to vaccines and proactive disease prevention.
Accordingly, mandatory vaccination through the Expanded Immunization Program, in addition to routine vaccinations and catch-up vaccinations, will include proactive vaccination campaigns and other vaccination organization methods as decided by the Ministry of Health .
Increasing access to vaccines for all age groups contributes to proactive disease prevention.
PHOTO: DAU TIEN DAT
At the same time, the regulation stating "People have the right to use and be guaranteed equitable access to vaccines and biological products according to age and target group throughout their lives to protect themselves and the community" institutionalizes Resolution 72 of the Central Committee.
This is an important legal regulation to enable units and localities to organize and implement appropriate campaigns, preventing diseases more promptly and effectively in the future, aiming for universal vaccination and early disease prevention.
"Previously, there was no law on proactive immunization, and we often had to 'beg' for vaccines from the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) or donors, because there was no mechanism to purchase vaccines for campaign immunization, in addition to routine vaccinations," Mr. Nam shared.
Associate Professor Tran Dac Phu, former Director of the Department of Preventive Medicine, Ministry of Health (now the Department of Disease Control), highly appreciated the role of proactive vaccination campaigns because "with this regulation, functional agencies will be able to purchase vaccines and biological products for vaccination, preventing and controlling epidemics early. Vaccination should be carried out as soon as there is a risk of disease outbreak, based on epidemiological surveillance, rather than only deploying vaccination against the epidemic when an outbreak occurs."
Expanding opportunities for proactive disease prevention.
Mr. Nam added that the new regulations in the Law on Disease Prevention clearly reflect the shift in focus from treatment to disease prevention, with proactive immunization and sustainable vaccine access being strategic priorities. People will be able to prevent diseases early, amidst the context of emerging and re-emerging infectious diseases that pose a risk of rapid spread in the community due to environmental changes and global interaction.
Sharing more about early disease prevention, Mr. Phu said that the community needs to know more about lifelong immunization and vaccination for everyone.
For a long time, the State has ensured free vaccines in the expanded immunization program, prioritizing children and pregnant women due to limited resources.
However, vaccines are available worldwide and in Vietnam for nearly 30 infectious diseases, and people need access to these vaccines through appropriate channels, with lifelong vaccination programs for all age groups.
In addition to the groups prioritized for budget allocation over the years, the elderly and those with chronic diseases also need to be vaccinated against certain vaccine-preventable infectious diseases. This is because these individuals, when infected, often experience severe symptoms, require hospitalization, and face a higher risk of death.
"Every dollar spent on preventative care yields far greater benefits, as it avoids serious illness, hospitalization, long-term complications, time off work, loss of income due to serious illness, and the need for caregivers."
"Even with some vaccines against serious diseases like cancer, prevention offers significant benefits by avoiding severe illness with treatment costs that can reach hundreds of millions, or even billions of dong," Mr. Phu said.
The "Vaccination for All" program, implemented by the Department of Disease Prevention (Ministry of Health) from 2025 to 2027, continues to consolidate the vaccination achievements of previous years, aiming to increase people's access to proactive disease prevention vaccines and expand the list of target groups and age ranges eligible for vaccines and biological products for disease prevention.
Source: https://thanhnien.vn/tiem-chung-khong-cho-dich-benh-bung-phat-185251214121235801.htm
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