The Iloilo City Health Office (CHO) reiterated their call for children to be vaccinated for measles, particularly with an outbreak declared over the Western Visayas.

Iloilo City Health officer, Dr. Bernard Caspe, noted a low turnout last year for various immunizations, including measles-rubella and polio.

“One reason why there are measles is because there were only [a] few who [had] themselves vaccinated,” he explained. “Since they were not able to get the immunization, they could easily be affected.”

The CHO official also said the city is making an effort to get more children vaccinated, noting, “CHO is going door-to-door to encourage the parents of these children to have them immunized [at] our district health centers.”

Between January 1 and February 12, CHO reported six suspected measles cases across the city.

Last year, there were 24 confirmed cases out of a total 64 suspected cases./WDJ