The World Health Organisation’s European arm urged countries on Tuesday to implement “urgent” immunisation campaigns, POLITICO reports.
In the first 10 months of 2023, measles cases have increased 30 times more than the previous year. UN officials said declining vaccination rates are responsible for the resurgence of the highly contagious virus, which causes fever, coughing and, in rare cases, pneumonia, brain inflammation and death.
More than 30,000 cases of measles have been reported in the WHO European Region between January and October 2023. In 2022, 941 cases were reported. Cases have increased in recent months and the trend is expected to continue unless urgent action is taken, WHO said. Hans Kluge, WHO Europe’s regional director, noted:
Urgent vaccination efforts are needed to halt transmission and prevent further spread. It is vital that all countries are prepared to rapidly detect and timely respond to measles outbreaks, which could endanger progress towards measles elimination.
WHO reports that routine childhood immunisation between 2020 and 2022 has been interrupted by the Covid-19 pandemic. It is estimated that more than 1.8 million infants were not immunised against measles during this period. The WHO said the cases were reported in countries where measles has been officially declared an eliminated endemic disease.
The country’s National Health Service launched a major vaccination campaign on Monday. Last week, the UK Health Safety Agency (UKHSA) declared a national incident following a sharp rise in measles cases across the country.
