Health Secretary Francisco Duque yesterday confirmed another case of polio involving a nine-year-old girl in Basilan, bringing the total confirmed polio cases in the country to eight this year.
After leading the “Patak Polio” vaccination campaign at the Dr. Jose Fabella Memorial Hospital in Manila, Duque confirmed that the samples sent to the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine and the National Institute of
Infectious Diseases Japan came out positive for poliovirus.
The confirmed polio case is that of a nine-year-old girl from Basilan who has not received any vaccines for polio, the Health Secretary said.
However, Duque stressed that there is no need for a draconian measure amid the latest confirmed case. A stricter compliance on vaccination against polio must be enforced, he said.
The DoH is currently coordinating with the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao-Ministry of Health to maximize immunization coverage and intensify polio vaccination efforts in Basilan.
The Health department also assured that the stocks of oral polio vaccine are sufficient and that preparations for the outbreak response immunization are underway. (Betheena Kae Unite)
