Europe: WHO Issues Measles Warning as Cases Surge 30-Fold

Facts

• The World Health Organization (WHO) issued an urgent warning on Tuesday after Europe recorded an increase in measles cases in 2023 by a factor of 30.¹
• Between January and October last year, 40 of the 53 countries in the WHO Europe region reported more than 30K cases, compared to 941 measles cases in all of 2022.²
• According to the WHO, 40% of cases were in children between one and four years old, while one in five of the cases were from adults who were at or over the age of 20.³
• This 'alarming rise' in measles cases reportedly led to the deaths of five individuals and 21K hospitalizations.⁴
• The WHO said that post-COVID travel had increased the risk of cross-border proliferation of the potentially dangerous disease, adding, 'Urgent vaccination efforts are needed to halt transmission and prevent further spread.'⁵
• Globally, vaccination rates against measles before the COVID pandemic stood at 86% before dropping to 83% in 2022. In Europe alone, at least 1.8M infants missed their measles vaccination between 2020 and 2022.⁶

Sources: ¹Bloomberg, ²The Guardian, ³BBC News, ⁴Euronews, ⁵Independent and ⁶Arab News.

Narratives

• Pro-establishment narrative, as provided by The Hill. Measles is a highly contagious virus that can cause meningitis, seizures, and even death in children and adults. While there's no specific treatment for the life-threatening disease, vaccination rates of 95% could stop its spread completely and provide life-long protection. Under-vaccinated or unvaccinated populations risk causing large outbreaks in countries that have historically been measles-free. Public health agencies must heed the WHO's warnings.
• Establishment-critical narrative, as provided by Breitbart. The WHO in Europe is leading the push with charged calls for 'urgent' action when it comes to vaccination for another disease outbreak. While the measles vaccine may have been an effective treatment for the disease over the past few decades, it's natural for individuals to have questions — especially after the confusing and polarizing COVID pandemic. Medical institutions are poised to address this outbreak but must be mindful of patients who carry reservations they wouldn't have had a few years ago.

Predictions