Garin blames previous admin for vaccine hesitancy

Former Health secretary and Iloilo 1st District Rep. Janette Garin attributed the reemergence of pertussis and other vaccine-preventable diseases to the previous administration's shortcomings.

Garin explained that vaccine hesitancy, where parents hesitate to have their children immunized, is the root cause of the increase in pertussis cases.

She argued that this hesitancy did not arise suddenly but was a consequence of past DOH officials, specifically former secretaries Francisco Duque III and Paulyn Ubial, failing to combat misinformation about vaccines.

Garin highlighted that the Philippines is the only country globally to register a pertussis outbreak and experience resurgences of polio and measles deaths, linking these issues directly to vaccine hesitancy.

She concluded that the current administration is dealing with the aftermath of mistakes made during the previous administration, which led to a significant decrease in vaccination rates.