(Belgium) Worldwide, 23 million children missed their basic vaccines through routine vaccinations last year, 3.9 million more than the year before. This is the highest number since 2009. The World Health Organization (WHO) announced this on Thursday.
Official data from the WHO, as well as the UN children’s rights organization UNICEF, shows that most of the children, up to 17 million, did not receive any vaccine by 2020. Most would live in conflict regions, remote areas or slums. The WHO points out that the operation of many vaccination services was disrupted in 2020, with Southeast Asia and the Eastern Mediterranean in particular affected. But limited access to health services and vaccination would have increased the number of children who did not receive their first vaccination in all regions. Compared to 2019, 3.5 million more children missed their first vaccine against diphtheria, tetanus and whooping cough (DTP-1), 3 million more missed their first measles vaccine. According to the WHO, the data also shows that middle-income countries now have a growing number of children missing at least one vaccine. In India, the decrease is very large: the percentage of children who received a third vaccine against diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis (DTP-3) fell from 91 to 85 percent. The US region is also a source of concern, it said. There, a lack of funding, disinformation about vaccines and instability are causing a declining vaccination rate. 82 percent of the children are still fully vaccinated with DTP, compared to 91 percent in 2016. The WHO notes that even before the corona pandemic, the global vaccination coverage remained around 86 percent against diphtheria, tetanus, whooping cough, measles and polio. That is not enough, because the WHO considers, for example, a 95 percent vaccination rate for measles, often the first disease to show up when children are deprived of vaccines. “These are alarming numbers that suggest that the pandemic is wiping out years of progress and exposing millions of children to deadly, preventable diseases. This is a wake-up call. We cannot allow COVID-19 to leave a legacy of a resurgence of measles, polio and other deadly diseases,” Seth Berkley, CEO of the international vaccine alliance Gavi, said in the press release. Together with Unicef and the WHO, Gavi calls for the urgent return of routine vaccinations and to invest extra in them. (Belgium)
Official data from the WHO, as well as the UN children’s rights organization UNICEF, shows that most of the children, up to 17 million, did not receive any vaccine by 2020. Most would live in conflict regions, remote areas or slums. The WHO points out that the operation of many vaccination services was disrupted in 2020, with Southeast Asia and the Eastern Mediterranean in particular affected. But limited access to health services and vaccination would have increased the number of children who did not receive their first vaccination in all regions. Compared to 2019, 3.5 million more children missed their first vaccine against diphtheria, tetanus and whooping cough (DTP-1), 3 million more missed their first measles vaccine. According to the WHO, the data also shows that middle-income countries now have a growing number of children missing at least one vaccine. In India, the decrease is very large: the percentage of children who received a third vaccine against diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis (DTP-3) fell from 91 to 85 percent. The US region is also a source of concern, it said. There, a lack of funding, disinformation about vaccines and instability are causing a declining vaccination rate. 82 percent of the children are still fully vaccinated with DTP, compared to 91 percent in 2016. The WHO notes that even before the corona pandemic, the global vaccination coverage remained around 86 percent against diphtheria, tetanus, whooping cough, measles and polio. That is insufficient, because the WHO considers, for example, a 95 percent vaccination rate for measles, often the first disease to show up when children are deprived of vaccines. “These are alarming numbers that suggest that the pandemic is wiping out years of progress and exposing millions of children to deadly, preventable diseases. This is a wake-up call. We cannot allow COVID-19 to leave a legacy of a resurgence of measles, polio and other deadly diseases,” Seth Berkley, CEO of the international vaccine alliance Gavi, said in the press release. Together with Unicef and the WHO, Gavi calls for the urgent return of routine vaccinations and to invest extra in them. (Belgium)
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