Working Group on New TB Vaccines - WHO Position
WHO VACCINES POSITION PAPERS
In accordance with its mandate to provide guidance to Member States on health policy matters, WHO publishes a series of regularly updated position papers on vaccines and vaccine combinations against diseases that have an international public health impact. These papers are concerned primarily with the use of vaccines in large-scale immunisation programmes; limited vaccination, as executed mostly in the private sector, may be a valuable supplement to national programmes, but is not emphasized in these policy documents. The position papers summarize essential background information on the respective diseases and vaccines, and conclude with the current WHO position concerning their use in the global context. The papers are reviewed prior to publication by a number of experts inside and outside WHO, and are designed for use mainly by national public health officials and immunisation programme managers. They may also be of interest, however, to international funding agencies, the vaccine manufacturing industry, the medical community, and the scientific media.
All new position papers and updates published as of May 2006 will have been endorsed by WHO's Immunization Strategic Advisory Group of Experts prior to publication.