Hontiveros: Dengvaxia-vaccinated children should be identified, protected

Senator Risa Hontiveros on Monday called for a "Luzon and Cebu-wide database" of children yet to have contracted dengue, but have been vaccinated with Dengvaxia.

"Our primary concern right now should be the health and welfare of all those children exposed to unnecessary risk as a result of the immunization program," Hontiveros said in a statement.

French manufacturer Sanofi Pasteur revealed that those who were dengue-free before vaccination with Dengvaxia can have "severe disease... following vaccination upon a subsequent dengue infection."

"Over 700,000 Grade 4 students (at least 9 years old) in Central Luzon, Calabarzon, and the National Capital Region have been given the dengue vaccine. Of the total number, health officials said that 70,000 are at risk," Hontiveros said.

She said Sanofi must "shoulder health needs of affected children" and "provide full compensation" to them.

"Sanofi must be held responsible and the culpable health officials accountable. While vaccination and immunization are protective and essential elements of preventive health care, implementing an immunization program that could do more harm than good to our children is the height of negligence that could border on the criminal," Hontiveros ended.

The Department of Health (DOH) has launched an investigation into the P3.5-billion deal to acquire the batches of Dengvaxia it used in the now suspended dengue immunization program.

The DOH previously announced that it has a database of all vaccinated students in Regions III, IV-A, and NCR. Children who have been vaccinated are all public school students.

Only Cebu City, where the vaccine was made available to the general public, will have its recipients profiled for monitoring and testing. It is unknown if the conditions are the same for Lapu-Lapu and Mandaue cities.

An estimated 733,000 children in public elementary schools aged nine and above residing in Regions III, IV-A, and the NCR were administered with Dengvaxia in three rounds over the past year. —Rie Takumi/ALG, GMA News