Acosta claims ‘underdistribution’ of measles vaccines from 2014–2017

Public Attorney’s Office (PAO) chief Persida Acosta on Sunday claimed that a Commission on Audit (COA) report shows an under-distribution of measles vaccines from 2014 to 2017.

Acosta made the claim in response to Senator Risa Hontiveros' statement blaming the PAO chief for the measles outbreak and calling on her to resign.

“[Sa] COA report—senadora siya, dapat alam niya—noong 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, may underdistribution ng measles vaccine, diphtheria, polio at iba pa,” Acosta said in an interview on Super Radyo dzBB.

The PAO chief said that about 30 percent of children did not receive the mentioned vaccines. She said that the underdistribution was possibly caused by undersupply.

Acosta also said that if the P3.5-billion budget that was used for Dengvaxia had been spent on "proven vaccines" such as measles vaccines, the underdistribution could have been avoided.

“Kasalanan ng mga namumuno sa DOH [Department of Health] na may underdistribution sa ibang baksin na subok, e nag-concentrate sa Dengvaxia,” Acosta said.

After Sanofi Pasteur announced that persons who had not yet had dengue faced an  increased risk of hospitalization for dengue and severe dengue after being given Dengvaxia, PAO legally represented families of deceased children who received the dengue vaccine as ordered by the Department of Justice in 2017.

Last November, a pathologist opined at a House hearing that Acosta "jumped to the conclusion" that Dengvaxia had caused the deaths, while an international dengue expert said that an autopsy cannot be the basis for linking Dengvaxia to the death of a child who received the vaccine.

As 2019 began, the Department of Health announced measles outbreaks in Metro Manila and in several areas in Luzon and the Visayas. 

At San Lazaro Hospital, where at least 60 people, many of them children, have succumbed to the highly contagious but preventable disease, doctors said that many of the parents pointed to the Dengvaxia scare as the reason for not vaccinating their children.

Hontiveros ealier called on Acosta to resign for supposedly contributing to erode public trust in the government’s vaccination program. 

Acosta, however, has refused to take any responsibility for the increased fear of vaccines, saying that she and her children are vaccinated against several diseases.

“Huwag niya akong ipako sa krus dahil hindi po ako ang may tungkulin na mag-distribute ng bakuna noong 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017,” Acosta said. — Joviland Rita/BM, GMA News