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The Ministry of Health has removed children under the age of five from the priority group vaccination campaign against the flu this year. The ministry said that the decision was agreed upon with the states and municipalities.
The estimate aims to vaccinate 76.5 million Brazilians, including the elderly, pregnant women, health workers and children aged six months to four years. The campaign will take place between 4 April and 3 June.
According to the technical note published by the Ministry of Health, the goal is to reach at least 90% of each of the priority groups: children, pregnant women, postpartum women, the elderly over 60 years of age, indigenous peoples, teachers and workers healthy people.
The number of doses provided by the SUS has not been adjusted compared to last year. In total, 80 million doses of influenza vaccine will be distributed to states and municipalities.
According to the ministry In the case of children From six months to children under five who have already received at least one dose of the vaccine throughout their lives in previous years, the single-dose vaccination schedule should be considered in 2022. The guidance is to schedule the second booster dose of the influenza vaccine 30 days after the first.
This year, the trivalent flu vaccine used by SUS — which is produced by the Butantan Institute — will be effective against H1N1, H3N2 and type B strains.
Experts criticize change
Experts have criticized the public’s exclusion from priority influenza vaccination. For Pediatrician Roberta Esteves Vieira de Castro, Pediatric Editor-in-Chief at PEBMED Portal, the procedure is a setback.
Since 2015, vaccination coverage for children across Brazil has declined. Preventable diseases, such as polio and measles, are making a comeback precisely because of this lower coverage. Reducing the age group appropriate for immunization is a setback in prevention, leaving thousands of children and their families vulnerable to diseases that can have irreversible effects or lead to death. “It is important that, at every appointment, the pediatrician or family doctor checks the child’s vaccination schedule,” said Roberta Castro.
In the opinion of pediatrician and health professional Daniel Becker, the moment requires an increase in vaccination coverage, not a reduction. “At a time when we have seen a gradual decline in vaccine coverage, where we have had an almost complete launch of masks, where children come from two years of toxic stress, locked indoors, without contact with nature, other children and many other factors of stress, removing an age group from the flu vaccine It represents a major setback,” said the specialist, who added that the change could cause confusion in the population, as the adhesion of five-year-olds had already been performed for a few years.
Read also: Influenza vaccination and outpatient antibiotic treatment reduction
“We have had a significant decrease in vaccination coverage since 2016-2017. We once had 95% of our coverage against polio, today we have 70%. With regard to measles, we are the only country in the Americas with persistent transmission. Measles has re-emerged in Brazil, and it is a very serious and very dangerous disease for children. This is why we should vaccinate more children, not less,” concluded Daniel Baker.
*This article has been reviewed by the PEBMED Medical Team
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Journalist graduated from Universidade Estácio de Sá (UNESA), Postgraduate Studies in Market Communication from Escola Superior de Propaganda e Marketing (ESPM) and in Strategic Communication Management from Instituto de Gestão e Comunicação (IGEC / FACHA)
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