Procurement of vaccines against pneumococcus initiated – Vaccination of children to be made mandatory on March 1

The National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF) has opened a tender for the procurement of vaccines for children against the streptococcus pneumoniae bacterium. The vaccination will be made mandatory on March 1.

The procurement of 165,000 vaccines is planned for the mandatory immunization of children up to 2 years of age, and 4,500 vaccines are to be procured for the immunization of persons under special risk, from 2 years of age and up, who have not been vaccinated before. The total value of the procurement is around RSD 904 million.

As stated in the documentation, the NHIF will sign a framework agreement, whereas the contract on the public procurement will be signed by the Public Health Institute of Serbia “Dr Milan Jovanovic Batut”. The supplier will need to oblige to deliver the amount of 41,250 syringes for the vaccination of children of up to two years of age and 2,500 syringes for persons under special risk by February 28, 2018, in case the framework agreement is signed.

In line with the regulations on immunization, vaccination of children against the streptococcus pneumoniae bacterium will be mandatory from March 1.

According to the estimates of the World Heath Organization (WHO), as Novosti reports, over 1.6 million people die from diseases caused by pneumococcus a year, and nearly half of them are children under five.

As they said at Batut, these diseases are the leading cause of mortality among children up to five years of age in the group of diseases that can be prevented by vaccination. These diseases are mostly manifested through the inflammation of sinuses or the middle ear and pneumonia, whereas meningitis, sepsis and forms of pneumonia accompanied by the presence of bacteria in the blood are the most difficult ones.

The bid submission deadline is February 2.

Republički fond za zdravstveno osiguranje Beograd

Institut za javno zdravlje Srbije Dr. Milan Jovanović Batut Beograd

WHO Geneva

National Health Insurance Fund

NHIF

Public Health Institute Dr Milan Jovanovic Batut

vaccination of children

vaccine

vaccines

vaccination against streptococcus pneumoniae bacterium

vaccination against pneumococcus

streptococcus pneumoniae

pneumococcus

World Health Organization

WHO

inflammation of sinuses

inflammation of middle ear

pneumonia

inflammation of lungs

meningitis

sepsis

infection diseases