Last year, less children were vaccinated in comparison with 2014, the results of the Public Health Institute show, Telegfraf.mk reads.
The range of all the vaccines and repeated shots belonging to the obligatory immunization calendar stands below 95 percent, while for certain booster shots the range has reduced even more. The downfall has been particularly visible in the past two years.
According to the recommendations of the World Health Organization, in order to secure a successful immunization of the population, the vaccines range should be above 95 percent.
"This is first and foremost due to the aggressive anti-vaccination campaigns. Then, last year, hexavalent vaccines were introduced, and many parents were waiting for their arrival, but the authorities postponed the vaccination on purpose," said Blagoja Aleksovski, head of the immunization supervision department, part of the Public Health Institute.
The immunization range that should be covered with the vaccine against hemofilius influenza is the smallest, i.e. it stands at 88.6%. The highest number of vaccinated children have been injected with the shots against polio or infantile paralysis, i.e. 92.1%.
The situation is even more alarming when it comes to receiving the second and third dosages of the vaccination process. The second vaccines for diphtheria and tetanus was given to 91.2% of children, for diteper - 91%, while 42.2% of girls have been vaccinated against the Human Papillomavirus.
Gevgelija, Gositvar, Kavadarci and Stip are among the towns in Macedonia where immunologists have noticed a significant decrease of the range of vaccinated children.