While reported measles cases have fallen compared to previous years, progress toward measles elimination continues to decline and the risk of outbreaks is mounting, according to a new report from the World Health Organization (WHO) and U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), which was described in a news release.
During 2020, more than 22 million infants missed their first dose of measles vaccine — 3 million more than in 2019, marking the largest increase in two decades. And only 70% of children received their second dose measles vaccine, well below the 95% coverage needed to protect communities from the spread of the measles virus, the organizations said.
Compared with the previous year, reported measles cases decreased by more than 80% in 2020.
However, measles surveillance also deteriorated with the lowest number of specimens sent for laboratory testing in over a decade.
Major measles outbreaks occurred in 26 countries and accounted for 84% of all reported cases in 2020.
Adding to the worsening of immunity gaps worldwide, 24 measles vaccination campaigns in 23 countries, originally planned for 2020, were postponed because of the COVID-19 pandemic — leaving more than 93 million people at risk for the disease.
