THE chairman of the Senate committee on health and demography is considering holding a separate hearing on the P3.5 billion anti-dengue vaccine controversy from the one conducted by the Upper House’s blue ribbon committee is conducting. Sen. Joseph Victor Ejercito, who heads the health committee, said the hearing would focus on the medical aspect, which he said was not discussed thoroughly during the blue ribbon panel’s December 14 hearing. So on that aspect I may have to call for a separate hearing,” he added. The committee on health and demography hearing is being planned to allow a more thorough discussion of all aspects related to the Dengvaxia vaccine. The Thursday proceedings at the Senate was supposed to be a joint hearing of the blue ribbon committee under Senator Richard Gordon and the health and demography panel under Ejercito but Gordon presided over the seven-hour hearing and did gave Ejercito and the resource persons of the health committee less than five minutes to ask pressing questions.

Source: Manila Times December 17, 2017 16:52 UTC