MANILA (Reuters) - Former Philippine President Benigno Aquino defended on Thursday his decision to implement a controversial immunisation programme using a new dengue vaccine in 2016, saying it was justified with millions of people at risk of being infected by the virus.
The decision was made to help prevent a disease affecting up to 2.8 million people, Aquino told senators investigating the campaign after the company Sanofi said its Dengvaxia vaccine was to be strictly limited due to evidence it could worsen the disease in people who had not previously been exposed to the virus.