A dangerous situation due to the shortage of rabies vaccines

The Government Medical Officers' Association (GMOA) points out that due to the severe shortage of rabies vaccines in Medical Officer of Health (MOH) offices island-wide, there is a high risk of a rapid increase in human deaths in the future. The association emphasizes that due to the disruptive situation in this supply system, there is a possibility of the disease spreading among animals and directly endangering human lives, and that this is a major reason for reversing the progress made in rabies control in the country over many years.

Dr. Chamil Wijesinghe, Media Spokesperson for the Government Medical Officers' Association, states that the National Rabies Control Program has been completely crippled due to the current vaccine shortage. This crisis has also become a major obstacle to achieving the national goal of eliminating rabies deaths from Sri Lanka by 2030, under the 'One Health' approach jointly implemented by the Ministry of Health and the Department of Animal Production and Health.

The doctor points out that although facilities exist to obtain these vaccines through private vaccination centers, this shortage within the government health system is a serious public health problem. The program for vaccinating stray dogs and other animals, which is essential for rabies control, has also been halted for about the past one and a half months, and although this is a preventable disease, the situation has worsened due to existing supply issues.

Rabies, a severe disease that is 100% fatal once symptoms appear and has no cure, can be completely controlled by proper vaccination. Dr. Chamil Wijesinghe further states that urgently resolving this vaccine shortage at the government level is essential to prevent such a deadly situation.