Karnataka Health Minister Dinesh Gundu Rao, who met the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) Director General at Delhi on Tuesday, said the Kyasanur Forest Disease (KFD) vaccine is likely to be available for use by 2026.
“The vaccine being developed by the Hyderabad-based Indian Immunologicals Ltd., with the concurrence of ICMR has shown promising results in first phase and is in second phase of clinical trials on macaque monkeys. The second phase will be started soon and human trials will take place in April 2025 and the vaccine will be available for use in 2026,” he said.
The State will extend all support, including monetary aid to ICMR, for faster delivery of vaccines, he said.
Previously, the vaccine developed against KFD has been found ineffective. Hence, a new vaccine is being developed through research and development. Aiming at preventing KFD deaths, the Karnataka government is now bearing the cost of developing the new vaccine.
Meeting with Nadda
Mr. Gundu Rao, who also met Union Health Minister J.P. Nadda on Wednesday, submitted a memorandum seeking increase in salaries for doctors and staff nurses under the National Health Mission as the existing salaries are not attractive for them to work in rural areas.
In the three-page memorandum, he requested that the number of beneficiaries under Ayushman Bharat Jan Arogya Yojana for which the support being extended by the Union government should be increased. This is because the number of beneficiaries being covered by the State government is almost double of what the Union government is extending support to.
Currently, all the 1.15 crore BPL card holders in Karnataka are provided free healthcare services under the scheme. However, the Union government has considered only 69 lakh beneficiaries of the State under the scheme. “The State is bearing the expenses of the remaining beneficiaries and the Union government should include more beneficiaries under the scheme,” the memorandum said.
“Certain critically required surgical procedures like correction of various spinal deformities in the children should be covered under the Ayushman Bharat scheme. With regard to funding for patients with rare diseases under the National Policy for Rare Diseases, it is requested that some funding for supportive therapy could also be considered under this policy for those suffering from diseases such as Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy,” the memorandum stated.
Published – October 16, 2024 09:34 pm IST
