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Thursday, December 05, 2019

Measles Deaths 'Staggering and Tragic'


More than 140,000 people died from measles last year as the number of cases around the world surged once again, official estimates suggest.

Most of the lives cut short were children aged under five.

The situation has been described by health experts as staggering, an outrage, a tragedy and easily preventable with vaccines.

Huge progress has been made since the year 2000, but there is concern that incidence of measles is now edging up.

In 2018, the UK - along with Albania, the Czech Republic and Greece, lost their measles elimination status.

And 2019 could be even worse.

The US is reporting its highest number of cases for 25 years, while there are large outbreaks in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Madagascar and Ukraine.

The Pacific nation of Samoa has declared a state of emergency and unvaccinated families are hanging red flags outside their homes to help medical teams find them. Read More

Related Articles:
Measles Makes Body 'Forget' How to Fight Infection
Measles: How a Preventable Disease Returned from the Past
Measles Numbers Were Bad In 2018. This Year, They're Even Worse
Progress Toward Regional Measles Elimination — Worldwide, 2000–2018
Churches can play a role in countering the spread of measles in the United States and elsewhere through dessimination of accurate information regarding immunization, provision of transportation for unvaccinated families to vaccination centers, and advocacy for greater access to vaccines for highly communicable and potentially life-threatening diseases like measles. Loving your neighbor includes caring about the health and well-being of your neighbor's children.

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