Fake yellow fever vaccine attracts govt crackdown

There have been reports of private centres providing the shots illegally in certain parts of the country.

The central government is cracking down on unauthorised centres administering yellow fever vaccine and issuing fake certificates, and has asked states to identify and take action against them, according to people familiar with the matter.

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“Following reports that certain unauthorised centres are administering vaccination and issuing invalid or fraudulent yellow fever vaccine certificates, resulting in the quarantine of passengers, ministry of health and family welfare reiterates taking extreme caution to the invalid vaccination certificates issued from these unauthorised centres,” health secretary Rajesh Bhushan said in a letter that was sent to the states on April 20th.

HT has reviewed the letter.

Although administering yellow fever shots is controlled by the government, there have been reports of some private centres providing the shots illegally in certain parts of the country. The quality of vaccine cannot be monitored and the certificates issued by these centres may not be valid for re-entry into India or entry into other countries that are free of the disease.

Yellow fever is an acute viral haemorrhagic disease transmitted by infected mosquitoes, with 40-60% mortality. The yellow in the name comes from jaundice which affects some patients. The virus is endemic in tropical areas of Africa, and central and south America.

Occasionally, travellers who visit yellow fever endemic countries may bring the disease to countries free from the ailment. To prevent this, many countries require proof of vaccination against yellow fever before they issue a visa, or allow entry or re-entry.

India, for instance, requires travellers to yellow-fever endemic countries to get the vaccine before they travel, although it is usually checked only on re-entry. A single dose provides lifelong protection against the disease, and a booster dose of the vaccine is not needed.

The Indian government recently found that many of the Indians it evacuated from Sudan, were not vaccinated as per international standards against the disease and had to be quarantined as a precautionary measure. According to the data shared by the press information bureau on Operation Kaveri, the rescue of Indians stranded in the war-torn African nation, of 1,191 passengers who were evacuated till end of April, 117 needed to be quarantined.

That seems to have prompted the letter.

“It is requested that the state/Union Territory government may probe into the reports of such non-authorised vaccination centres at your states and initiate necessary corrective measures to ensure strict compliance to the national policies and guidelines,” the letter said. “Action initiated on such centres may also be reported to the Central International Health Division.”

Fake vaccination certificates not only have a negative impact on public health but also are against the law, the health secretary said. The Centre has also increased enforcement at points of entry to ensure that travellers with fraudulent certificates do not enter the country through international borders and are quarantined as mandated under the International Health Regulations 2005.

“There is no established transmission of the virus within the country. The risk if yellow fever importation into India is considered high if there is laxity in the strict implementation of the vaccination measures taken for the travellers,” Bhushan said in the letter.

A senior central government official who asked not to be named said, “We don’t know who these people are, from where they are procuring the vaccine, and selling at exorbitant rates. The certificates that Indian government approved centres issue follow international guidelines. These centres are merely duping people who will eventually face inconvenience on their return.”

In India, all travellers over nine months of age travelling to and from yellow fever endemic countries are required to be in possession of a valid yellow fever vaccination certificate issued by authorised and designated vaccination centres on arrival into the country. The Central International Health Division of the Directorate General of Health Services, under the Union health ministry, is the nodal office for administering yellow fever vaccines and issuing vaccination certificates.

Meanwhile, yellow fever vaccine supplies that were in short supply till a couple of weeks ago — as the vaccine is procured from Russia — are back on track,” said the official cited above.