Not hesitancy but affordability
Health experts recently observed an encouraging development: Filipinos are becoming more open again to vaccination. This is a significant turnaround from the decline in public trust in vaccines following a controversy years ago.
But barriers remain, particularly, prohibitive costs that prevent many from getting even a single life-saving shot.
The article, “Cost, not fear, keeps Filipinos away from vaccines,” published by the Inquirer this week, quoted experts as saying that the problem is no longer vaccine hesitancy, but affordability.
The government provides free vaccinations for BCG (Bacille Calmette-Guerin), hepatitis B, pentavalent, PCV (pneumococcal conjugate), measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR), oral polio (OPV) and inactivated polio (IPV), pneumococcal, and human papilloma virus (HPV). These are available at barangay health centers and other local health facilities all year round, and are targeted for infants, the elderly, and those with comorbidities.
However, specific vaccines for adults and travelers, or those that contain newer formulations, must be paid out-of-pocket. They include those against influenza, shingles, and typhoid that could cost from below P1,000 to P9,000. In this economy, these costs could mean missing out on essentials for many Filipinos.
Dengvaxia controversy
Infectious disease expert Rontgene Solante noted that the COVID-19 pandemic was instrumental in softening Filipinos’ mistrust of vaccines, which was triggered by the Dengvaxia controversy a decade ago.
In 2016, 14 schoolchildren died after being given the Dengvaxia vaccine. The number of deaths is a fraction of the 729,105 children who received the vaccine, yet it created a far-reaching impact on the mindset of many Filipino parents.
One indication was the measles outbreak in 2019, with 415 deaths out of 31,056 cases recorded. The World Health Organization (WHO) attributed it to the decline in routine immunization among children.
“The Philippines has seen a decline in the first dose of measles vaccine in the past decade—from above 80 percent in 2008 to below 70 percent in 2017. Initial figures for 2018 indicate further decrease. As a result, many children have become susceptible to measles infection,” the WHO reported in February 2019. It estimated that 2.6 million Filipino children under the age of 5 years were not protected from measles, and predicted periodic outbreaks if the immunization rate remained low.
By 2024, the measles vaccination rate returned to 80 percent, indicating a change in attitude. This became evident at the height of COVID-19 when, despite a 2021 study by the University of the Philippines College of Mass Communication (now the College of Media and Communication) suggesting the prevalence of vaccine hesitancy in some Filipinos, inoculation rates were later observed to have picked up.
This was ascribed to the public seeing the value of getting inoculated against diseases. But a crucial factor was also that the government provided COVID-19 vaccines for free.
Budget issue
Department of Health spokesperson Albert Domingo recently admitted that providing free vaccines is a budget issue, especially under the current economic situation, when the global oil crisis is squeezing the limited resources of the government as well as Filipino households.
Solante noted that it is a challenge for doctors to encourage vaccination when patients have financial constraints and prioritize other needs. As health reform advocate Dr. Tony Leachon noted in a social media post in August 2025, health-related out-of-pocket expenses are crushing Filipino families and are the third leading cause of household debt in the Philippines.
For many families, the choice between putting food on the table and paying for a vaccine is obvious, even though the latter is as important as a meal. A vaccine shouldn’t be considered a luxury, but as much of a necessity as three square meals a day.
Underspending on PHC
This is where local government units (LGUs) should step in by directing some of their national tax allotment to primary health care (PHC), including providing vaccines to their constituents.
A recent study by the Philippine Institute for Development Studies indicated that PHC expenses by LGUs rarely exceeded P800 per person, falling short of the required P1,827.80 to deliver health and nutrition services. The think-tank noted that the underspending, even among richer LGUs, was not because of a lack of funds but misplaced priorities, with the budget being funnelled into other items such as infrastructure projects.
This only exposes government neglect of public health by pouring billions into roads, bridges, and school buildings where these are lost to corruption when that money could have paid for much-needed medicines.
The government has long lamented vaccine hesitancy, blaming it for diseases and outbreaks. But now that attitudes have changed, it should take advantage by pouring resources into health care, including for life-saving vaccines.
