Vol. 529 No. 2
123 Mr. Noonan asked the Minister for Health and Children the way in which parents who wish to vaccinate their children against the threat of measles, rubella and mumps may exercise an option to have the injections administered singly rather than together; the way in which a parent in Limerick can make the necessary arrangements with the Mid-Western Health Board to have her son vaccinated in this manner; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2666/01]
The purpose of the primary childhood immunisation programme is to protect the child population against a range of potentially serious infectious diseases. Policy in this area is based on the advice of the national experts, primarily the national immunisation committee of the Royal College of Physicians of Ireland.
MMR vaccine is available free of charge from family doctors under the primary childhood immunisation programme and there is no provision for children to receive separate measles, mumps or rubella vaccinations under this scheme. The MMR vaccine has been demonstrated to be both safe and effective. On the basis of currently available information there is no evidence that giving each of the component vaccines separately has any greater benefit than the combined vaccines. Splitting the MMR vaccine into separate components would involve extra injections for children and would cause both children and the people with whom they come in contact to be exposed to these potentially serious diseases for a much longer period of time.
The information currently available to my Department is that separate measles or mumps vaccines are not available in this country.
With regard to public concern about the MMR vaccine, the expert advice available indicates that the MMR vaccine is safe and effective and that there is no evidence of a causal relationship between the MMR vaccine and either chronic inflammatory bowel disease or autism. This is supported by a number of well-validated studies on this issue.
