site.btaChief State Health Inspector Proposes Downscaling of TB Vaccination

Chief State Health Inspector Proposes Downscaling of TB Vaccination

Sofia, March 29 (BTA) - The Chief State Health Inspector will propose to the decision-makers to downscale TB vaccinations in Bulgaria. "We have the intention and the desire to put forward a discussion of the matter of reducing the number of TB vaccine administrations," Dr. Angel Kounchev told a BTA-hosted news conference of the Bulgarian Pediatric Association on Tuesday.

All newborn babies in Bulgaria are vaccinated with the Bacillus Calmette-Guerin (BCG) vaccine, after which BCG is administered again when they are between seven and ten months of age. The vaccine is re-administered when the children are seven, 11 and 17.

There is no other country in the world with five vaccinations, Kounchev commented. Half of the countries in Europe do not administer the vaccine at all, while in the case of others it is administered once or twice. According to Kounchev, administration at the age of 17 can be made redundant, but that is yet to be discussed with experts. In his opinion, if the scheme has to be applied, this may only concern groups at risk with unsure coverage and a higher rate of getting TB.