Armenia Sends 30.000 Measles Vaccines to Georgia
Armenia has decided to help Georgia fight the current measles epidemic in Tbilisi.
After discussing with Georgian Health Minister David Sergeenko, his Armenian counterpart Arsen Torosyan announced on February 2 that Armenia would contribute by sending 30.000 vaccines across the border. He has been informed that 1025 new cases of measles had been found so far in Georgia. However, he also wrote on his Facebook page that intensive vaccinations of people between 20 and 50 helped to decrease the number of new cases per day from 50 to 35. The epidemic today is mainly due to a lack of child vaccinations in the 1990s.
As for Armenia, Torosyan explained that high levels of measles vaccinations in the country have kept the population protected for more than 10 years, considering the last measles case was reported in 2007. Containing the epidemic in Georgia is also a way to ensure that it will not spread to Armenia.
By Gabrielle Colchen
Image Source: health.harvard.edu
Related Articles:
All Citizens of Georgia to Receive Vaccinations against Measles for Free