Immunizations to be Recorded in the NHIS

Immunizations to be recorded in the NHIS. With the amendments to Ordinance No. 15 of 2005 on immunizations promulgated in the State Gazette, mandatory, targeted, and recommended immunizations and re-immunizations will now be recorded in the National Health Information System (NHIS).

What the amendments include:

• Electronic vaccine system – through it, biological products for mandatory immunizations and re-immunizations, as well as serums and medical devices provided by the Ministry of Health (MH), will be distributed, requested, dispensed, and reported.
• Automated reports – healthcare facilities will receive reports on received and available quantities of vaccines, with the system deducting doses that have already been administered.
• Annual plans – each healthcare facility will have an automatically calculated plan for the required vaccine quantities, which must be verified and confirmed.

Reduced Administrative Burden

With the introduction of the system, the following obligations are removed:

• submission of paper annual plans and reports to the Regional Health Inspectorates (RHI);
• maintaining a logbook for prophylactic immunizations;
• entering data into immunization passports and personal outpatient records.

The NHIS will generate automated reports for individuals covered by mandatory immunizations according to the codes of the respective vaccines, which also eliminates quarterly reports to the RHI.

Additional Changes

• RHI will receive information on immunization refusals, including the name, personal identification number (EGN), address, and telephone number of the individual or their parents/guardians.
• Pregnant women – immunization against pertussis continues, with the added possibility of administering an influenza vaccine throughout the entire pregnancy.
• New recommended vaccines:
  • against respiratory syncytial virus (RSV);
  • against meningococcal infections, serogroup B – for all children over 2 months and adolescents up to 18 years of age.

Objective of the Amendments

The reform aims to create a unified electronic environment for information exchange between the Ministry of Health, regional health inspectorates, and healthcare facilities, while simultaneously reducing the administrative burden on general practitioners and facilitating the tracking of immunization coverage at a national level.

You can view the full ordinance here.