House Appropriations Committee Chairperson Rep. Karlo “Ang Probinsyano” Nograles on Saturday thanked his colleagues in the Senate for finally approving the P1.161 billion supplemental budget for the 800,000-plus recipients of the controversial Dengavaxia dengue vaccine, but stressed that he had very serious concerns about the Senate version of the bill and that the differences between the House and Senate versions of the measure had to be addressed so that the supplemental budget would properly address the needs of the children who had received Dengvaxia in the government’s dengue vaccination program in 2016.
At the sidelines of a meeting with families of Dengvaxia recipients in Quezon City, the legislator from Davao stressed that the “lives of the over 800,000 children vaccinated with Dengvaxia are the responsibility of government” and that “all efforts should be exhausted to ensure their well-being.”
“Not just this year or next year, but for the years to come. Every illness these kids get is a potentially life-threatening one,” said Nograles.
It was in this context that Nograles aired his concerns over the Senate version of the supplemental budget, saying that one major difference between the Senate version and the measure passed by the House is that the House version identifies the beneficiaries of the supplemental budget as “dengvaxia vaccinees” while the Senate version indicates that beneficiaries would be “dengue patients.”
The House of Representatives unanimously approved House Bill (HB) No. 7449 in May this year. The measure set up a P1.161 billion fund as medical assistance for Dengvaxia vaccine recipients.
“It is important that we provide the DOH with the resources it needs to reassure the families adversely affected by this public health debacle.”
Nograles said the distinction was important because it would determine how the funds from the supplemental budget would be used.
“The supplemental fund represents partial reimbursement made to the Philippine government through the DOH (Department of Health) by the French pharmaceutical firm Sanofi Pasteur. So it was our understanding in the House that these funds would be intended for the children who were given the Dengvaxia vaccine,” explained the solon.
Nograles said that these were among the concerns he hoped would be addressed in the bicameral committee that would be meeting to resolve the differences between the two versions of the supplemental budget bill.
Accordingly to Nograles, being a Dengvaxia recipient “is a dark cloud to live under, which is why it is important that we provide the DOH with the resources it needs to reassure the families adversely affected by this public health debacle.”
“The lives of the over 800,000 children vaccinated with Dengvaxia are the responsibility of government.”
