KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 10 — Pasir Gudang MP Hassan Abdul Karim has expressed support for the Johor state government’s potential move to subsidise a dengue vaccine for state residents.
Hassan said he regularly attends monthly meetings by the Johor Bahru District Development Action Committee chaired by the Johor Bahru district officer, where dengue reports are always presented without fail by the Johor Bahru district health office.
“The problem of dengue is very serious,” Hassan told CodeBlue.
“Thus, I fully support the federal government and state government of Johor to subsidise the dengue vaccine,” added the PKR lawmaker. He was referring to his support for either the federal or Johor state government to provide subsidies for the shots.
“It is important to prevent dengue. After all, Parliament every year gives the second biggest amount of the national budget to the Ministry of Health (MOH).”
Johor state health and environment executive councillor Ling Tian Soon reportedly said last month that the state government was considering subsidising the dengue vaccine, especially for residents in dengue hotspots.
Currently, prices for dengue vaccination in the private sector vary from RM400 to RM500 for two doses given three months apart.
Johor Reports Higher Dengue Cases, Deaths This Year
Johor has reported a concerning increase in dengue cases, with 12,342 cumulative cases reported by the 46th epidemiological week of the year (November 10-16), up 33.3 per cent from 9,258 cases in the same period in 2023.
Of the reported cases, 7,316 cases (59.3 per cent) were reported from non-outbreak localities, while 5,026 cases (40.7 per cent) were from outbreak localities.
The state reported 20 total dengue-related deaths this year up to Epid Week 46, a 5.3 per cent increase from 19 fatalities recorded in the same period last year.
In Epid Week 46, a total of 171 dengue fever cases were reported. The district reporting the highest number of cases was Johor Bahru with 104 cases, accounting for 60.8 per cent of the total, followed by Kulai (32 cases), Kluang (11 cases), Muar (7 cases), Batu Pahat (4 cases), Kota Tinggi (4 cases), Segamat (3 cases), Tangkak (3 cases), Pontian (2 cases), and Mersing (1 case).
“Breeding site elimination activities continue to be carried out by health personnel both indoors and outdoors,” Ling told CodeBlue, highlighting ongoing efforts to mitigate mosquito breeding.
However, he noted that many community members remain unaware of their role in eliminating potential breeding sites for Aedes mosquitoes.
“Enforcement activities have issued a total of 5,605 compounds amounting to RM2,802,500.00 in fines offered; of this total, 65 per cent have paid their fines,” he added.
Vaccine ‘Important Tool’ Towards Zero Dengue Deaths
The introduction of vaccines like Takeda’s dengue vaccine marks a significant advancement in Malaysia’s fight against dengue fever. With a national goal of zero dengue-related deaths by 2030, vaccination plays an essential role in achieving this objective.
In a recent op-ed for CodeBlue on Malaysia’s journey towards zero dengue deaths, consultant paediatrician Dr Musa Mohd Nordin described the dengue vaccine as an important tool in the prevention and control of dengue.
“The dengue vaccine has shown to have sustained long-term protection against dengue disease and hospitalisations, and there are no major safety risks,” wrote Dr Musa.
Citing a study on the dengue vaccine in four Latin American countries and three countries in Asia among more than 20,000 children and adolescents, Dr Musa noted “very encouraging” results, with 61.2 per cent vaccine efficacy (VE) against symptomatic dengue at 4.5 years.
“The overall VE against hospitalisation at 54 months was 84.1 per cent. This would most certainly reduce the severity of dengue experienced by the vaccinee and reduce the burden on hospital admissions,” he wrote.
The total rates of unsolicited serious adverse events were similar in the dengue vaccine and placebo groups.
“The dengue vaccine should be incorporated as part of an integrated approach to dengue prevention and control,” said Dr Musa.
Many ordinary Malaysians also believe that dengue vaccination is worth the value, describing it as an “investment” to protect themselves and their children, and to prevent loss of work productivity.
