As Umrah pilgrims suffer: Meningitis vaccine issue to be resolved in 2 days, says govt

LAHORE:The crisis arising out of the short supply of meningitis vaccine deepened, Punjab Health Minister Salman Rafique said Wednesday the issue will be resolved in two days

The Saudi government has made the vaccination mandatory for travel to Saudi Arabia issued over two months ago.The citizens, especially those intending to perform Umrah, and the Pakistani workers intending to go back to work in the Kingdom are suffering due to non-availibility of the vaccine.

The Pakistan government did not issue timely guidelines for mandatory vaccination against meningitis after the Saudi government’s latest advisory issued over two months ago, and therefore remained unmoved to preempt the crisis with cut-off date approaching on February 10, 2025. Most countries had issued health advisories in accordance with Kingdom’s latest guidelines in this regard. The Qatar’s Ministry of Public Health announced updated health requirements for pilgrims, including mandatory meningococcal vaccination for all its citizens and residents travelling for Umrah or visiting the Masjid-e-Nabvi (PBUH) in Madina.

An aviation official informed that most airlines had also issued latest health requirements after the announcement of Saudi government. “All trade partners are advised to inform travelers of health requirement of mandatory meningococcal vaccine for Umrah, effective from 10.02.2025,” says a statement by an airways.

The intending pilgrims from all over Punjab converged in the provincial capital to get the vaccine shots only to face disappointment as sudden high demand created an artificial shortage in the open market as well.

“The meningitis vaccine is neither available at the government immunisation centres nor in the market as weak government control led to an artificial shortage,” says a health department official.

“The meningitis vaccine is being administered to children as usual in government hospitals, immunisation centres and private clinics,” says Dr Masood Sheikh, a child specialist. However, he said, the quantity of dosage is higher for adults.

The vaccine could not be available at private pharmacies and local medical stores, while private laboratories, which administered vaccines, are also refusing customers due to non-availability. This situation has led to black-marketing of vaccine by those who have vaccine in their stocks.

In case of Poliomyelitis, all travelers from states reporting cases (Pakistan and Afghanistan etc.), the approved vaccines include, at least one dose of, bivalent oral polio vaccine (BOPV) or inactivated polio vaccine (IPV). It is recommended to receive Oral Polio Dose Vaccine within the previous six months and not less than four weeks prior to arrival in Saudi Arabia; or inactivated polio vaccine dose within the previous 12 months and administered not less than four weeks prior to arrival in Saudi Arabia.

The people are worried as air tickets have been booked while they are still waiting to get the vaccine. “It has created a panicky situation as we are considering cancelling our travel and accommodation bookings,” says a citizen intending to travel for Umrah.

The people have complained that the meningitis vaccine is being sold in black at medical stores in the provincial capital, saying that a vaccine dose, which generally has a price less than Rs5,000, is being sold at Rs10,000 to 20,000 apiece.

“A private pharmacy on Jail Road, which claimed to make the vaccine available, is taking advance payments and noting down names with expected dates of supply,” says a customer. The sources informed that the manually-issued cards are not verifiable through NADRA’s National Immunisation Management System (NIMS) as in the case of polio or COVID vaccinations.

While the meningitis vaccine is not included in the Expanded Programme of Immunisation (EPI), the government has failed to import meningitis vaccine so far to facilitate intending Umrah pilgrims especially ahead of the holy month of Ramazan.

However, the health authorities of Punjab have advised citizens to buy the vaccine from local drugstores and get it administered at any of the government health facilities, including Institute of Public Health (IPH) or Ministry of National Health Services Regulations and Coordination’s regional office on Birdwood Road in provincial capital.

The polio vaccination, however, is easily available as national polio eradication campaign is also in progress. The certification of polio vaccination is also easily downloadable through NIMS at a price of Rs100 each.

The Primary and Secondary Healthcare Department (PSHD) Secretary Nadia Saqib has sought a report from Drug Control Unit of Punjab in this regard. “The secretary has taken strict notice of black-marketing of the vaccine and assured to ensure sale of vaccine as per approved rates,” says the spokesman. He also informed that the vaccines of any of the designated multinational companies will be acceptable for travel.

Provincial Health Minister Khawaja Salman Rafique has said that the issue of shortage of meningitis vaccine in Punjab will be resolved in the next two days for the convenience of people intending to go for Umrah. He informed that he had discussed the issue of shortage of meningitis vaccine with Dr Mukhtar Bharath, Coordinator to Prime Minister on Health, and Dr Asim Rauf, Chief Executive Officer of Drug Regulatory Authority Pakistan (DRAP) with a view to ensuring the availability of meningitis vaccine in Punjab. “Ample stock of meningitis vaccine is currently available in the markets of Punjab,” he said.