According to the latest data from the World Health Organization (WHO), the measles epidemic is spreading across the European continent as vaccination rates decline, reports Gizmodo. More than 21 thousand people contracted measles last year, while a record low of 5,273 cases was reported in 2016. So far, 35 people have died from the disease’s complications.
Last year, epidemics broke out in 15 out of 53 countries, with the highest number of cases in Romania (5,562), Italy (5,006), and Ukraine (4,767). In these countries, a decline in routine immunization, consistently low coverage among marginalized groups, vaccine supply interruptions, and a weak disease surveillance system have been recorded.
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In Romania, most cases of illness were recorded among the Roma, who rarely vaccinate their children and visit doctors in case of illness. In Italy, 88 percent of infected individuals had not received the vaccine. Unjustified skepticism about the safety and efficacy of vaccines is widespread across Europe due to conspiracy theories originating in the U.S. claiming that vaccines cause autism.
