Measles cases in Europe have reached an all-time high, with a record 41,000 reported this year, according to the World Health Organization.
In order to understand the factors behind the outbreak (which is occurring only two years after a record-low number of measles cases in 2016) NPR interviewed Dr Siddhartha Datta, a vaccines and preventable diseases specialist for the World Health Organization.
Key takeaways from the interview included:
- The under-vaccinated or unvaccinated population grew over a period of two years leaving them vulnerable to infection.
- Reasons for the large number of people going unvaccinated include: vaccine stockouts, misinformation, rumors or complacency on the disease, or lack of access to healthcare services.
