Vaccine Failure

Why Some Pilipinos Loses Hope of Vaccination in covid-19

It all started at dengue vaccination called Dengvaxia. Every year thousand of Pilipino died because of mosquito-borne viral disease that is endemic in the Philippines. According to Department of Health during 2008–2012, the Philippines reported an annual average of 117,065 dengue cases, placing the country fourth in dengue burden in southeast Asia.

The hope become nightmare

April 2016, Dengvaxia had a high-profile launch in the Philippines, as the country – having been involved in every phase of clinical development – became the first in the world to access the live recombinant tetravalent vaccine. The Department of Health spent $67m on Dengvaxia and kicked off a mass immunisation programme with the aim of vaccinating a million students by the end of the year.

Sanofi a pharmaceutical giant also had high hopes for Dengvaxia, the development of which had taken 20 years and cost around $1.8bn. Sanofi looked well-positioned to reap the benefits of offering the first-ever dengue vaccine to global markets. October 2016, Dengvaxia had received regulatory approval from 10 other countries, including Mexico, Brazil and Indonesia.

November 2017 Sanofi announced that it was changing its label to restrict its use to only those who had already been exposed to dengue virus. Having reanalysed its trial results, Sanofi said the evidence now suggested that dengue-naïve people who received the vaccine could be vulnerable to more severe infections, the announcement was made after more than 830,000 children had received at least one dose of the vaccine (Dengvaxia is administered as three injections.)

February 2018 vaccination drive had become a national scandal, and blame was being cast at pharma firms and health department officials alike. Allegations surfaced that the vaccine was linked to the deaths of several children, and in February the Philippines Public Attorney’s Office filed a lawsuit against government officials and executives of Sanofi and distributor Zuellig Pharma. The suit sought damages claiming that a 10-year-old girl died after receiving the vaccine despite the fact that she had a pre-existing condition.

After the scandal people get scared of any vaccination drive by the Department of Health sighting safety concern due to Dengvaxia scandal that causes life loses of "130 children" as result more life had lost due to avoidance of vaccination illness like measles and polio were recorded again after two decades of polio free.

The challge of covid-19 vaccine is what the Philippine is facing to gain the trust of its people again.