News item | 04-07-2022 | 12:19
Vaccinations make an enormous contribution to Dutch public health and the prevention of illness, damage to health and death. The RIVM’s 2021 vaccination coverage report shows that in 2021 fewer people will contract a disease against which the National Immunization Program (RVP) vaccinates. The vaccination coverage of almost all NIP vaccinations was slightly lower for the whole of 2021 than a year earlier, partly due to delayed vaccinations due to the corona epidemic. Together with all organizations and professionals involved in the National Vaccination Programme, State Secretary Maarten van Ooijen (VWS) is committed to reversing this trend with the ‘Full confidence in vaccinations’ approach.
To make the vaccination system future-proof, the GGD will introduce a public vaccination facility for adults. The aim of this facility is to simplify the implementation of vaccination care for adults, so that adults who choose to do so can easily obtain new vaccinations. It is also part of the approach to pandemic preparedness. After all, it is not always necessary to look for a new operator, so that we can make the Netherlands better prepared to fight future pandemics.
State Secretary Van Ooijen: “It is good to see that the implementation of the National Immunization Program has continued as well as possible despite the limitations of the corona pandemic. A really special achievement by the Youth Health Care and the RIVM and all the professionals who have worked hard on this! Vaccination is and remains extremely important to prevent all kinds of diseases. With a vaccination facility for adults, we are taking an important step towards a future-proof and agile vaccination system. This means that every Dutch person can use the vaccinations offered quickly and easily. Of course, for all vaccinations, everyone decides for themselves whether or not to participate. And of course I am committed – along with many others – to ensure that as many people as possible decide to participate on the basis of clear, independent information. Because vaccination saves lives, every year.”
Falling Vaccination Rate in Vaccination Rate Report 2021
The vaccination coverage report focuses on a full year of COVID-19 and its fight. The impact of this is reflected in a slightly declining vaccination coverage of almost all RVP vaccinations. Exact numbers and percentages can be found in the RIVM’s 2021 Vaccination Degree Report. A small decrease in the vaccination rate also gives extra reason to be vigilant. The protection of the Dutch population is determined by the immunity of the entire population. RIVM and Youth Health Care are committed to sending extra invitations and research is being conducted into the reasons why parents do or do not vaccinate. In addition, additional actions will follow from the ‘Full confidence in vaccinations’ approach. Three action lines are central to this:
- monitoring and strengthening trust,
- strengthening the provision of information and
- increasing accessibility.
In concrete terms, extra action will be taken, including target-group-oriented communication policy with explanations in different languages, conversation ambassadors in the neighborhood and improving communication with input from professionals and parent panels.
Vaccination facility for adults
At the request of the previous cabinet, the Council for Public Health & Society (RVS) has conducted an exploration into the future-proofing of the vaccination system. This shows that the current system is very complex due to the coexistence of different implementers and the associated tasks, powers, implementation mechanisms and legal frameworks. The RVS calls this a patchwork quilt. In the policy response to this report, State Secretary Van Ooijen intends to organize a public vaccination facility for adults at the GGDs as a solution. This vaccination facility is an important step towards a future-proof and agile vaccination system for all (new) adult vaccinations. So that every Dutch person at any age can use it quickly and easily. This change in the vaccination system is being implemented in phases. There will be a growth model that will gradually add more offerings to the adult vaccination supply, starting with vaccination against COVID-19. For the flu and pneumococcal vaccinations – which are now offered by the general practitioners – it will be examined which party this vaccination will suit best in the future. For the time being, the general practitioners will continue to carry out these vaccinations.
Response to the advice of the National Health Care Institute ‘Vaccination care for medical risk groups’
The previous cabinet also asked the National Health Care Institute to simultaneously map out the bottlenecks in access to vaccination of medical risk groups within the Health Insurance Act (Zvw) via an implementation test. This concerns, for example, patients with a reduced immune system, who have a medical indication for a vaccination. Adjustments in the field of knowledge, affordability and implementation are being worked out to improve the reach of these medical risk groups.