The Prime Minister has asked all provinces and cities nation-wide to ensure that the measles and rubella vaccination campaign covers at least 95% of the children under 14. The six-month-long campaign, launched recently by the Health Ministry, aims to administer the combined measles and rubella vaccine to around 23 million children for free under the framework of the National Expanded Program for Immunization (EPI). The Prime Minister directed the health ministry to work with the relevant agencies and the provincial and municipal People's Committees to build detailed plans for the vaccination campaign. The ministry must ensure a sufficient supply of vaccines, necessary materials and technical support for all localities. The PM asked the Ministry of Education and Training to raise the awareness of teachers, children and parents about the importance of vaccination. The Ministry of National Defence was requested to assist the vaccination efforts in the mountainous and remote areas and islands. As the largest-ever program in the country, the vaccination campaign is one of the measures being implemented to eradicate measles in Vietnam by 2017 and rubella by a future date, according to EPI director Nguyen Tran Hien. As of September 18, the vaccine had been provided safely to more than 28,000 children in Co Kuin District in the Central Highland province of Dak Lak and Vung Tau City of Ba Ria Vung Tau Province during a recent small-scale vaccination drive, added Hien. The Ministry of Health's statistics showed that there were 4,462 measles cases among nearly 20,000 suspected cases reported from 62 to 63 provinces and cities nation-wide since late 2013. Seventy-six of the total number of measles cases were reportedly mainly in children under the age of 10. (Vietnam News Sept 20)
