Bare Nanay: March 2016

Do you know how much vaccines cost?

My husband and I constantly talk about vaccines. K already has two shots of 6-in-1, measles, BCG and Hepa B. In our original pediatrician, hexa costs PhP 3,500. Recently, we were faced with Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine (PCV) priced at PhP 4,000 per shot; and we needed to complete three.

A week ago, a friend of mine told me that she was offered a certain brand of PCV at PhP 5,000 per shot.

In Metro Manila, the minimum wage is PhP 481 per day. In a month, that’s PhP 14,430. (Thank you to a mummy friend for correcting this.)

With a single-earner, I’d be honest and tell you that my family lives with a less than PhP 25,000 budget. Surprise, surprise! With that, we deduct rent, food, utilities, and my husband’s allowance. Sobrang hirap na to budget that amount. What more for minimum wage earners?

When I was invited to attend a forum organized by Medecins Sans Frontieres/Doctors Without Borders (MSF) last March 19 with Mommy Bloggers Philippines to discuss the campaign on how we can all work together to make life-saving vaccines more affordable, I confirmed my attendance without hesitation. This, after all, concerns my child.

Pneumonia is the leading cause of infant mortality and accounts to 1.1 million deaths among children under five years old worldwide. In 2014, Philippines implemented PCV in CARAGA and ARMM regions; and then, expanded in 2015 to twelve regions (except NCR, CALABARZON and MIMAROPA).

Per DOH, Pfizer and GSK offered US$ 15.37 and US$ 14.12 respectively per one dose of vial. MSF is campaigning to lower the cost of this vaccine to US$ 5 for all three doses.

If you’re wondering if it is possible, yes it is. The manufacturer called Serum Institute of India had already announced that it plans to sell their vaccines for US$ 6 for all three doses. Pfizer and GSK had already collectively reported US$25 billion of sales globally. That is more than enough for the vaccines actual production cost, research and marketing.

If the manufacturer can sell a vial for less than PhP 1000 per shot, and we are buying it for PhP 4000 and up, imagine where all that money goes. Do the math.

MSF’s #ASKPHARMA campaign aims to make this vaccine more available and affordable for developing countries. The more that people have access to it, the more lives will be saved. This had been done before when MSF brought down the price of HIV/AIDS treatment from US$ 10,000 to US$ 100 per year; and together, we can make this possible.

I am asking everyone to sign up for the campaign. This is not only a call for mothers and fathers. You may not be a parent, but you might as well be a sister or a brother of a very young child, a grandmother or a grandfather of a beautiful baby, an aunt or an uncle, a godparent, or simply a friend; and your support for this campaign may save the life of a child you hold so dear.

Give that child a chance for a fair shot.

Be someone’s hero.

___________________________________________________

To sign the petition, click on this link: http://www.afairshot.org/#phil

Medecins Sans Frontieres/Doctors Without Borders is an international humanitarian organization founded in Paris, France in 1971 and is based in Switzerland. To know more about them, visit http://www.msf.org

If you wish to support the campaign by doing a signature campaign in your locality, please do drop me an e-mail at niezhining@gmail.com.

12:14 AM 20 comments

Let me start this with a proverb:

“Kung walang tiyaga, walang nilaga. (There is no reward without perseverance.)”

I read the book (and made oohs and ahhhs on the illustrations); and I wanted to hand pick a proverb of another dialect fit for my life right now and I still got one in Tagalog and English. I am a WAHM now, and I attribute the rewards I reap for my family with perseverance.

But enough about that for now. J

I was invited last 15^th of March to attend the book launch of Philippine Proverbs held at Via Mare Oyster Bar in Greenbelt. His wonderful book’s content that showcases so much nationalism was collected by Neni Sta. Romana-Cruz and illustrated by Eisen V. Bernardo.

Ms. Reni Roxas, Tahanan Books’ Publisher greeted me and my eight-month old when I reached the venue, and then introduced me to Ms. Cruz and to Mr. Bernardo.

I was seated with my co-Mommy Bloggers Philippines members who brought their children as well.

The room filled up easily. An array of snacks were served: Suman at Mangga, Puto Bumbong, Bibingka, and Burgers and Fries. My son snacked on the ripe mangoes.

The online invite said that we can win a prize if we bring something that reminds us of our hometowns. I giddily got a budin (cassava cake). I was born in Tayabas, Quezon. We have an entire street that sells edible pasalubong. The specialty is budin; hence, it was called Kalye Budin (Cassava Cake Street, you read that right). I got a lovely bundle of a notepad and two witty greeting cards! The paper lover in me almost died of happiness!

Our icebreaker was a BINGO game. They gave us blank cards and we can customize it with whatever dialect is on the card that was part of the centerpiece on each table. The host opened a page on the book by random and whatever dialect was there, we had to cross it out. First to cross out a line, wins. I didn’t win. I suck at games.

In the middle of eating, a couple fought. My son cried at the same time. I tried to look away and wondered if it was staged, but they were getting so loud. I can tell everyone’s attention was caught but nobody tried to approach them, anyhow. The author approached them and said that they were ruining the event. They were apologetic, and then started to shout a each other in different dialects.

Ah-ha! Staged! But it was catchy, indeed.

The illustrator, who looked unassuming when he took the floor, is a talented Los Banos-based graphic artist whose work had gone viral internationally. Hooray for simple yet wonderfully creative people!

Ms. Cruz explained how some people may be thinking that the proverbs in the book were already made, anyhow and just needed to be collected; but said that it was still difficult to do so and took her years to finish.

My little boy and I got a loot bag filled with the Philippine Proverbs book, another notepad and more greeting cards. I was so happy!

I’d be honest and say I’m awful in Filipino compositions. Aside from English, I am knowledgeable of three more languages, but it’s such a shame that I don’t have a grasp of Filipino grammar. I wanted to write this one in entirely Filipino because it would have suited the topic well, but alas!

I got the book signed and dedicated to Khale. I’ll be reading this to him often so he’d grow an appreciation of the Philippines and its culture, as well as the other dialects., and perhaps, I could learn from it as well.

The book is so much fun to read, by the way!

Here was the Mommy Bloggers Philippines Group:

I'm the one with the crying baby. I wanted to take nice photos but he was really inconsolable.

Cheers!

2:18 PM 19 comments

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