As Measles Cases Close In On 30-Year High, WHO Warns US Must Act Now
With 1,168 confirmed cases across 33 states — more than four times as many cases as last year — the country is at risk of losing its disease-elimination status. U.S. leaders must focus on vaccine efforts to prevent it from becoming endemic, the WHO's vaccine director says.
ABC News:
US Measles Cases Nearing 30-Year High
The number of measles cases in the U.S. so far this year has quadrupled compared to 2024 and is nearing a 30-year high. As of Friday, there have been 1,168 confirmed measles cases across 33 states nationwide, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Last year, the U.S. saw just 285 measles cases, CDC data shows. (Benadjaoud and Kekatos, 6/6)
Politico:
WHO Sounds The Alarm As US Measles Cases Mount
Dr. Katherine O’Brien, the WHO’s vaccines director, told POLITICO’s Carmen Paun that U.S. political leaders should clearly endorse and promote measles vaccination to prevent the country from losing its disease-elimination status — and become a location that gives rise to future outbreaks that can easily spread domestically and abroad among travelers. If the disease spreads continuously for a year, it would be considered endemic for the first time in 25 years. “It’s really a sign of a country going backwards in terms of their ability to protect people,” O’Brien said. (Gardner and Hooper, 6/6)
The Guardian:
A Huge Outbreak Has Made Ontario The Measles Center Of The Western Hemisphere
Outside the emergency room of the St Thomas Elgin general hospital, about 125 miles southwest of Toronto, a large sign with bright yellow block letters issues an urgent warning: “NO MEASLES VAX & FEVER COUGH RASH – STOP – DO NOT ENTER!” To see such an imperative in the 21st century might have been previously unimaginable for Canada, which in 1998 achieved “elimination status” for measles, meaning the virus is no longer circulating regularly. (Bowden, 6/6)
In related news —
Stat:
Measles Laboratory Network Tries Public Fundraising After Trump Cuts
The Trump administration’s gutting of global aid is threatening to collapse a critical network of laboratories responsible for measles and rubella surveillance around the world. Now, philanthropic leaders are rushing to try to save it. (Branswell, 6/9)
The New York Times:
Palantir’s Collection Of Disease Data At C.D.C. Stirs Privacy Concerns
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s plans to consolidate data on diseases like measles and polio are raising concerns about patient privacy, delays in spotting long-term trends and ways the Trump administration may use the information. The agency told state officials earlier this week that it would shift disease information to a new system managed by Palantir, the data analysis and technology firm co-founded by Peter Thiel. (Mandavilli, 6/6)
