Bali Still Has Adequate Anti - Rabbies Vaccines

Denpasar, Bali, May 9 (Antara) - Bali`s health department said the supply of the anti-rabies vaccines is available but is limited, despite the recent issue of a supply shortage of the variant. "The vaccine stock is still available but the anti-rabies serum is limited," chief of disease control and environment of the Bali Health Department Gede Wira Sunetra said here on Friday. Wira said the number of Anti-Rabies vaccine sent to the Sanglah Hospital was 500 vials and the recent number of Anti-Rabies serum was 70 vials. In addition to the number of vaccines available in the Badung Hospital, Bali, as many as 21 thousand vials are shipped per month, however, the serum availability is still limited. "All hospitals are still providing the rabies vaccine and there is no possibility of a shortage," Wira said. The costs of rabies serum and vaccines are borne by the government, but the private hospitals must pay for their expenses. Sanglah Hospital Chief Medical Support Dr. Ken Wirasandhi said the rabies vaccine is still adequate and there was no vaccine stock shortage so far. "The vaccine and serum availability in Bali`s hospitals are still adequate, however the vaccine supply is coordinated by the Bali Provincial Health Office," he said. Ken said dog bites are continuing to occur in Bali, but our concern is that the fatalities from dog bite incidents decrease in the province. The first rabies outbreak in Bali occurred in 2008 in Ungasan village. Since then, Bali had gone through three stages of mass vaccinations of dogs, monkeys and cats, all of which are believed to be rabies carriers.