Flu vaccinations should be provided free in China to promote immunizations and help protect the public against the virus, a World Health Organization expert said recently."Only about 2 percent of people in China receive flu vaccinations, and a major reason is that the vaccines are not free," said Zuo Shuyan, a vaccine researcher at the WHO's China office in Beijing. "We hope the government will include flu vaccines in its national immunization program so that more people are covered by the service."Unlike Category 1 vaccines - vaccines provided free to the public, such as those for measles, polio and hepatitis B - flu vaccines in China are in Category 2, which means they are optional, and people must pay for them.However, in a few places in China - including Beijing and Shanghai - local governments provide free flu shots to certain groups of people, such as those 60 or older, as well as primary and middle school students.China was hit by a severe flu epidemic over the past winter, with 56 reported deaths on the Chinese mainland in January, according to the National Health Commission. Public health experts have said receiving flu vaccines is the best way to prevent illness.Vaccines that can be effective against four major strains of the flu virus are under development by Chinese companies and may be available on the domestic market later this year, according to the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention. Vaccines currently in use on the Chinese mainland are effective against three strains.In 2016, the WHO recommended that China include five vaccines in Category 1, including pneumococcal, rotavirus and flu vaccines, as these are recommended by the WHO for mandatory use in all countries.Wang Huaqing, chief expert in the immunization program of Chinese CDC, said additional Category 2 vaccines may be provided free by the government in the future, but more feasibility studies and cross-departmental coordination are needed for decision-making.Since 1978, when China undertook a national immunization program, incidences of many infectious diseases have been greatly reduced, he said, with some diseases fully eradicated.For example, smallpox was wiped out in China in 1960 as a result of a door-to-door vaccination program that covered the entire population, Wang said - 20 years ahead of the eradication of the disease worldwide. custom silicone wristbandsmake your own rubber braceletprintable wristbandscustom printed wristbandscheap silicone wristbandslivestrong bracelet
A father-to-be paints on the stomach of his pregnant wife. [Photo/VCG] Mothers in the Tibet autonomous region are set to enjoy the longest maternity leave in China, Beijing News reported. The local authority has granted women one-year paid maternity leave, while Tibetan fathers are eligible for 30 day's paternity leave. Another 29 provincial regions have extended maternity leave since the introduction of the two-child policy in January 1, 2016. The extension was based on the revised Law on Population and Family Planning adopted last year. According to the law, all female employees who give birth are entitled to one to three months in additional maternity leave to the 98 days leave mandated. Maternity leave in Hainan and Henan provinces has increased to 190 days, and women in Heilongjiang and Gansu provinces are expected to enjoy 180 days of leave. Female workers in Beijing, Shanghai and some other provincial regions are entitled to have 128 days off when giving birth. Leave for fathers ranges from one week to a month in different regions. Paternity leave in Tibet autonomous region, Gansu and Yunnan provinces is the longest, which allow 30 days off work for fathers, while fathers in Tianjin municipality and Shandong province have the shortest paternity leave of seven days. Although maternity leave has been extended around China, some working women have difficulty accessing such benefits, according to Beijing News. Maternity leaves increased to 138-158 days on average in all regions, with paternity leaves at 15-30 days, according to an inspection on implementation of the new family planning policy. According to the National Health and Family Planning Commission, women over 35 years of age accounted for two thirds of all women eligible to have a second child. Some experts believe that extending maternity leave is beneficial for the older pregnant women who have increased risks when getting pregnant and giving birth. Demographer He Yafu believes the government should offer subsidies to enterprises that hire female workers to alleviate the pressure exerted by female workers' childbearing.
