‘No vaccination, no enrolment’ policy proposed

The Department of Education (DepEd) will study further the possible implications of a “no vaccination, no enrolment” policy in schools that is being pushed by the Department of Health (DOH).

This was disclosed by Education Secretary Leonor Briones who said that she recently met with Health Secretary Francisco Duque III at the DepEd Central Office to outline immediate course of action to address measles outbreak involving learners.

DOH, the DepEd Chief said, was “suggesting to make vaccination mandatory like no vaccination, no enrollment.”

Citing a DOH explanation, Briones said that children who are not vaccinated, but are allowed to enroll to schools are considered “a risk.”

However, she explained that the DepEd will have to “study” this proposal further. “We have to look at the human rights aspect and what the Constitution says,” she explained.

Briones noted that while the DepEd remains open to idea of the proposed “no vaccination, no enrollment” policy, she believed that there were other means to address the problem.

“Maybe we should think of other ways to convince parents that measles vaccination do not harm a learner,” she said.

DepEd and DOH will also strengthen its campaign that vaccination is safe. “The campaign is we want to inform the parents and the children about the fear on vaccination,” Briones said.

Both departments work together to implement the school-based immunization program.

However, with the Dengvaxia controversy, Briones noted that “parents were the ones who are afraid.”

“If they learn that there’s a doctor in the school, they are frightened because of the previous experience in Dengvaxia,” Briones said. “What we need to do is to make the parents understand that the risk in measles vaccination is not, perhaps as feared that as of Dengvaxia,” she added.

In November 2017, the controversy on the anti-dengue vaccine “Dengvaxia” erupted after French vaccine maker Sanofi Pasteur issued a statement citing that its “product poses higher risks to people without prior dengue infection.”

In SY 2016-2017, DepEd included in its expanded School-Based Immunization (SBI) the vaccination for dengue virus.

As such, the DepEd and DOH have agreed to carry out initiatives that will focus on data gathering, monitoring, and providing assistance to affected learners and their parents.

Briones shared that officials of DepEd and the DOH met last February 12 to discuss possible arrangements to help address the measles outbreak.