The Department of Health said Tuesday that about three million doses of pentavalent vaccine for pertussis will arrive soon as well as five million doses for measles and rubella.

Pentavalent vaccines protect not only against pertussis, but also against diphtheria, tetanus, hepatitis B, and hemophilus influenza type B.

Health Secretary Teodoro Herbosa ordered the speedy dispatch of one million doses for the non-selective immunization activity conducted in some areas in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao where a measles outbreak was reported.

The additional procurement of vaccines will add to the more than 64,400 and 2.6 million doses of pentavalent and measles-rubella vaccines, respectively, already being distributed by the DoH to protect the children amid the rising cases of the two diseases.