DOH chief: Pertussis outbreak now under control, but vaccination continues

MANILA, Philippines — Health Secretary Teodoro Herbosa believes that the country’s respiratory infection pertussis outbreak is now under control.

“Parang controlled na sya, parang nagpa-plateau, but we’re closely monitoring,” Herbosa said in an interview before attending a hearing in the Senate on Tuesday.

(It seems like it’s under control and has plateaued, but we’re closely monitoring it.)

READ: What is pertussis (whooping cough)?

“Meron tayong Regional Epidemiology Surveillance Unit  minomonitor yung cases nito. Luckily, meron tayong bakuna para dito so very important, walang dapat ikatakot dito sa sakit na pertussis,” he added.

(We have a Regional Epidemiology Surveillance Unit monitoring these cases. Luckily, we have a vaccine for this, so it’s very important. There’s nothing to fear about pertussis.)

Protect the population

Despite this, the Department of Health (DOH) chief stressed the need to protect the population, especially children, from the dangers caused by pertussis or the whooping cough.

READ: Pertussis or whooping cough in Mandaue: 5 cases, 2 deaths

He said pertussis is common among children aged 0 to 5.

“The  vaccination program continues so kung anak nyo e nandun sa age group na yun from 0 to 5, kailangan ma-schedule na yung kanilang bakuna. Kung hindi pa nabakuna, hindi pa naman huli pwede pa ring magpabakuna…” Herbosa  said.

(The vaccination program continues, so if your child is within that age group, from 0 to 5, their vaccine needs to be scheduled. If they haven’t been vaccinated yet, it’s not too late. They can still get vaccinated.)

READ: Pertussis: Cebu City health department logs 36 cases in first quarter of 2024

Pertussis outbreak

However, the DOH chief said the jab will only be administered to asymptomatic people.

“Dene-defer namin yung vaccination kung may lagnat yung bata , o may ibang sintomas,” he added.

(We defer the vaccination if the child has a fever or other symptoms.)

The DOH earlier reported that it has already brought at least 8 million vaccine doses to protect the population from pertussis and measles.

Three local government units have already declared a pertussis outbreak: Quezon City and Pasig City in Metro Manila, and Iloilo City in the Visayas, while a measles outbreak has been declared in the entire Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao.