Odisha Prepares Roadmap For 90% Immunisation Against Measles & Rubella By Dec

Bhubaneswar: The Odisha government has come up with a roadmap to achieve 90% full immunisation coverage against measles and rubella by December.

In a letter to all district collectors on Friday, Shalini Pandit, secretary, Health and Family Welfare department, said the country is committed to eradication of Measles & Rubella (MR) by December, 2023. In this regard, the state has prepared a roadmap. One of its strategic objectives is to achieve at least 95% of MR 1 & MR 2 antigen vaccination in each district.

The secretary further said the 5th meeting of India Expert Advisory Group on Measles-Rubella (IEAG-MR) held
in June reaffirmed the commitment for MR elimination by December 2023. It has been reiterated that for MR elimination, every district needs to achieve a coverage of 95% with both doses of MR vaccine with a NMNR Discard Rate of 2 per 100,000 population and zero transmission of the virus in the community.

The key recommendations of IEAG-MR are as follows:

• Aggressive implementation of strategies for strengthening of immunisation coverage, surveillance and outbreak response as outlined in the MR elimination roadmap.
• Intensified multi-sectoral coordination, participation of IMA, IAP, Rotary, Lions and Panchayati Raj etc.
• Well planned immunisation activities in urban & pen-urban areas to ensure no child is left unvaccinated.
• Utilise the opportunity of IMI 5.0 Drive for vaccinating all missed children till 5 years of age with MR Vaccine

“You are requested to review the routine immunisation activities and MR elimination programme at regular interval during district/city task force meeting to achieve and sustain more than 90% full immunisation coverage and achieve MR elimination by December in your district,” the secretary said in the letter to the collectors.