Vaccines safe

[sajiv]

Vaccines safe

The District Medical Officer (DMO) has clarified that the vaccines to be used for mass vaccination against Japanese encephalitis (JE) from July 15 to August 5 are not date-expired, as was reported in a section of the media.

In a statement issued here on Thursday, the DMO said the vaccine, SA 14.14.2, despatched by the Centre for the mass vaccination programme had been imported from China and the expiry date was July 2010.

The vaccines are being stored maintaining all cold chain precautions in the district vaccine store and there is no reason to doubt the quality or potency of vaccine, he added.

A mass vaccination against JE was carried out in Alappuzha last year and a batch of leftover vaccines had been brought to the district for use here. The public can be sure of it that the vaccines being used for the campaign in the district are from a fresh lot, the statement said.