In Transcarpathia, there is a critical shortage of measles vaccine, less than one third of the vaccination need is covered

During 2017, Transcarpathia received the vaccine for the prevention of measles, mumps and rubella in three tranches – in January, June and September.

– Out of the required 88 thousand vaccines, the region received only 26 thousand, that is, less than one third of the need, – Hennadiy Moskal emphasizes. – In total, as of the beginning of January, 637 cases of measles have been registered in the region, the disease is diagnosed in all districts of the region, except Perechyn and Velyky Berezny. Almost 90 percent of all patients are children under the age of 17, most of whom are children under the age of 1, who have not yet been vaccinated (the first vaccination is carried out at the age of 1), as well as children aged 1 to 4, who were supposed to get the first dose of the vaccine, but 71% of them have not received it. For the past year, only 317 parents’ refusals to vaccinate children against measles were recorded in the region, that is very few.

 The main reason why children do not get vaccinated is the lack of the vaccine. Unfortunately, our repeated appeals to the Ministry of Health to provide the required amount of vaccine remain without response.