In 2000, thanks to an effective vaccine with high uptake, the U.S. achieved a rare public health victory: zero cases of endemic measles transmission. But measles has persisted, with repeated outbreaks over the years, and it is having a big comeback. In the U.S., 23 cases of measles were reported over less than eight weeks in December and January, including seven cases brought in by international travelers and two outbreaks each involving more than five people. There was a thirtyfold increase in measles cases in Europe in 2023, with tens of thousands of hospitalizations and five deaths.
There was a thirtyfold increase of measles cases in Europe in 2023, with tens of thousands of hospitalizations and five deaths.
How did it get this bad? On top of pre-existing vaccine hesitancy and a thriving machine of misinformation and disinformation spread easily on social media, the Covid-19 pandemic led to supply chain and delivery interruptions and decreased access to routine primary and preventive care. Health budgets and personnel normally devoted to things such as community vaccination efforts were tied up in pandemic-related efforts. And in places where much of the care shifted to telehealth, that convenience also removed the opportunity to administer vaccines in the course of routine in-person visits.
Exemptions from vaccination play a significant role in outbreaks of preventable diseases like measles. While all states allow exemptions for medical reasons, and most allow religious exemptions, the area of greatest growth is in nonmedical, nonreligious, or “personal,” exemptions, which open the door for outbreaks.
Measles is a pretty terrible virus. Of those who become infected, 1 in 5 will need hospitalization, 1 in 20 will develop pneumonia and 1 in 1,000 will develop encephalitis (inflammation of the brain), and as many as 1 to 3 in 1,000 will die from these complications. Measles infection is dangerous during pregnancy, leading to miscarriage, low birth weight and…
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