The hexa- and pentavalent baby vaccines, which had been blocked for several months because of a shortage of quantities and the failure of public tenders for suppliers, have been provided. In October, the caretaker Minister of Health said that the two types of vaccines will be available by the end of November, but late last week pediatricians from different hospitals in the capital had not yet received the required quantities.

As of last week doctors in the country have been receiving vaccines, after their being distributed in the district health inspections.
The quantities have to be enough for all children whose vaccination was delayed as well as for those who have to be vaccinated this year, said chief health inspector Dr. Angel Koonchev.

In January the procurement of vaccines for 2015 is expected to be held, and Koonchev hopes that in February-March the needed quantities would be available. “There is, however, the problem whether we will have the hexavalent vaccines,” – he added, explaining that the problem was global, because the requests of the parties exceed 3 times the quantity produced.

The hexavalent vaccine, which is against hepatitis B, as well as against diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis, polio and haemophilus influenzae type B, was introduced for the children born after the 1^st of June 2014. The recording in the immunization calendar was done when at the beginning of the year one of the suppliers of the 5-valent vaccine said they could not deal with the quantities and recommended a revision of the immunization calendar. However in the summer it turned out that the new vaccines were missing. Because of the crisis the Health Ministry began negotiations directly with the wholesalers.