Due to climate change and global warming, diseases such as dengue is rampant nowadays. Among the places that have recent cases of dengue such as Asia, South America, the Caribbean, Australia, and some parts of the US and Europe, the Philippines is presently the most affected country of all.
Just recently, the Philippine health association declared dengue as today's national threat with more than 100,000 cases and 491 deaths nationwide just between January 1 to July 6 alone. Because of the disease's threat, the government is searching for every way possible to alter these increasing rates. Some are even considering to open its doors to Dengvaxia® once again, according to Inquirer.
It can be recalled that in April 2016, the health authorities of the Philippines embraced Sanofi Pasteur's Dengvaxia® administering the vaccine for over 700,000 individuals, mostly children. The government even paid about P3.5 billion or about 1.3 billion Chinese Yuan for it.
What happened next became a nightmare not just to the families of those who have been vaccinated but also for the whole country. That was when about 142 lives were lost as of July 4, 2019, which have been linked to the Dengvaxia® vaccine.
Because of this traumatic experience, many people had decided to go against the plea of Janette Garin, who is the country's former health secretary, when she urged the country's official to embrace the vaccine once again. Despite the debate, Garin is still strong to her grounds by saying, "I wouldn't be doing this if it's self-serving."
Though most Filipinos are not convinced of accepting Dengvaxia® vaccine in their country, Garin claims the need for this vaccine is still urgent as the dengue rates continue to rise. Despite this, she claims it is still important to respect the decision of everyone.
"But we cannot impose the belief of one side to the whole community. Let the people choose," Garin added. As the leader when it comes to the health concerns of everyone, the former health secretary claims the urgency for the government to stand between the demands of these people and rely only on experts for their health's betterment, as reported by ABS-CBN Network.
When asked whether the Dengvaxia® vaccine will be available for the public soon, Presidential Spokesman Salvador Panelo explains the government's decision will be based on the vaccine's safety and efficacy. If there are claims that the product is already safe for everyone to use, then the vaccine could be allowed in the country once again.
