H1N1 vaccine optional: Health Ministry

Health Ministry affirmed here yesterday that the H1N1 vaccine was optional not mandatory. Dr. Ibrahim Abdulhadi, Undersecretary at the Ministry, told KUNA that news in the media about the mandatory vaccine was not true, stressing that the situation did not require such measures to be implemented. Kuwait witnessed around 8,644 cases of the H1N1 (commonly known as the swine flue) since last April with most cases recovering from the disease.

Ministry of Health announced on Thursday that around 22 cases of swine flu H1N1 were reported this week, a drop in the number of cases in comparison to the past months.

Thus, the total number of A(H1N1) cases in Kuwait has reached 8,644 since the outbreak of the virus in the country last April, the ministry's spokesman, Qais Al-Duweiri, said.

He added, the ministry follows the World Health Organization WHO's regulations, calling upon citizens to commit to precautionary guidelines to curb the spread of the disease.

Children under the age of five, pregnant women and those over the age of 65 years are more vulnerable to the disease, in addition to those with chronic illnesses and low immune systems.

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