The Bacille de Calmette et Guérin (BCG) vaccine is the only approved vaccine against tuberculosis, providing protection for infants and children against severe forms of the disease. Discovered in 1921, the tuberculosis vaccine is mandatory for newborns.
However, a rumor has been circulating by word of mouth in the Central African Republic recently, suggesting that “the BCG vaccine administered to children at the Mother and Child Center is charged at a fee of 5000 CFA francs.” This is false information according to health specialists.
“All vaccines are free at the Mother and Child Center because we received them free of charge from the WHO. Health authorities have instructed us not to sell them to the Central African population. So, this is a false rumor,” stated Aboryot Pulchérie Clémentine, head of the Expanded Program on Immunization (EPI) at the Mother and Child Center.
Interviewed, Dr. Saint Alban Walter Lemotomo, head of vaccination logistics, clarified: “It should be noted that the country has implemented a strategy concerning all vaccines without exception. The BCG vaccine is not charged for.”
According to Yassiloua Angélique, interviewed by Centrafrique Check, “This is a lie, and the tuberculosis vaccine is administered to our children for free.”
The World Health Organization (WHO) specifies in an article published on its information site that: “The BCG vaccine offers moderate effectiveness in preventing severe forms of tuberculosis in infants and young children, but it does not provide sufficient protection for adolescents and adults, who account for nearly 90% of the disease’s transmission worldwide. According to a study commissioned by the WHO, it is estimated that over a 25-year period, a vaccine that is 50% effective in preventing the disease in adults could prevent up to 76 million new cases of tuberculosis, avert 8.5 million deaths, reduce the need for 42 million antibiotic treatments, and save $6.5 billion in costs borne by households affected by the disease, particularly the poorest and most vulnerable.”
BCG vaccination is the only means of protection against tuberculosis, a contagious disease caused by the Koch bacillus. Its effectiveness is balanced in preventing severe and dramatic forms of tuberculosis in infants and young children, but it does not provide sufficient protection for adolescents and adults, who represent 90% of the disease’s transmission worldwide, according to the UN health agency.
In conclusion, the information claiming that the BCG vaccine available at the Mother and Child Center is charged at 5000 CFA francs is false, as verified by Centrafrique Check.
This article was edited by Esdras Michael Ndamoyen.
