‘Viruses don’t know borders’: US anti-vaccine rhetoric could impact global measles crisis | Vaccines and immunisation
The US government has stepped up anti-vaccine rhetoric and signaled that it does not view measles as a priority; This could have global consequences as countries around the world lose or are on the verge of losing measles-fighting status.
World Health Organization Announced at the end of January He said six European countries (UK, Spain, Austria, Armenia, Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan) had officially lost their measles elimination status, meaning the virus had been circulating continuously in those countries for more than 12 months. To control measles, health advice says at least 95% of children need to be fully vaccinated against measles, but vaccination rates are falling across Europe.
In the United Kingdom, measles vaccination has declined particularly dramatically; Only 84% of five-year-olds received both recommended doses. Measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine by 2024. The United Kingdom is also “ground zero” for vaccine hesitancy, according to Jennifer Nuzzo, director of Brown University’s Pandemic Center. Andrew Wakefield, a former doctor, was living in the United Kingdom when a 1998 Lancet study linked the MMR vaccine to autism, which has since been retracted. He later lost his medical credentials. This is the second time the UK has lost measles status in less than a decade.
Even though more than 15 years have passed Wakefield’s study withdrawnThe idea that vaccines and autism are linked is gaining new traction around the world, with the help of U.S. Surgeon General Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
“The rhetoric that’s happening in the United States is spreading across borders to other countries,” Nuzzo said. “We live in a global ecosystem, so when they hear that, [the vaccine is] “It’s not good enough for Americans, and maybe it’s not good enough for us either.”
Kennedy is known for his work with the anti-vaccine group Children’s Health Defense, which continues to promote Wakefield’s debunked speeches about vaccines and autism.
Organizations and influencers like Children’s Health Advocacy those who support their rhetoric They often present themselves as activists, but Nuzzo is quick to point out that there is a for-profit industry behind their work. A. report A study from the Center to Counter Digital Hate found that the “anti-Vaxx industry” brings in at least $36 million in revenue annually. Before becoming health secretary, Kennedy himself in 2024 combined revenue in millions of dollars Children’s Health Defense and various law firms going after vaccine manufacturers.
Under Kennedy’s leadership, the United States is now on the verge of losing its measles-fighting status. Measles often spreads through international transmission, and both countries bordering the United States, Canada and Mexico have also seen an increase in measles outbreaks. Canada loses qualifying status in November last yearMexico’s status is also under threat.
Perhaps the strongest global signal the Trump administration has sent to prioritize measles It was a decision to withdraw funding From the Global Measles and Rubella Laboratory Network (GMRLNN), coordinated by the World Health Organization.
D., who has held senior public health positions in Seattle, Boston, and Los Angeles County, and is the current chief scientific officer of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. Alonzo Plow said breakthrough cases of measles usually start with two things: international travel and an unvaccinated child. In the past, GMRLN has helped detect measles outbreaks globally to help control travel-related transmission. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has funded GMRLN since its inception, but Trump administration is making cuts This meant that the network of nearly 800 international laboratories was struggling to keep the lights on and Surveillance may crash just as measles cases continue to rise.
“Viruses know no borders,” Plow said. International coordination is therefore particularly important when it comes to preventing the spread of highly contagious viruses such as measles. In the past, Plow has explained that there is a “protection network” built on “tight partnerships with the CDC” and international surveillance networks such as GMRLN and The Guardian. Pan American Health Organization.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services did not respond to specific questions about Kennedy’s vaccine stance or the status of GMRLN, but a spokesperson said: “HHS is working with the White House in a deliberative, interagency process on a path forward for global health and foreign assistance that protects Americans first.”
It is unclear whether GMRLN continues to operate at full capacity. A WHO spokesman said: “There is no global network without funding for the GMRLN. The high-quality laboratory surveillance provided by the GMRLN will be seriously compromised, if not lost completely, leaving Member States at very high risk of being unable to detect outbreaks and contain them in a timely manner,” but did not respond to specific questions about whether some laboratories had already closed or had their capacity reduced.
Nuzzo said the U.S. government’s continued involvement in the Pan American Health Organization, which coordinates GMRLN laboratories in the Americas, implies that the United States may contribute more to international surveillance efforts than public discourse suggests. But even by not publicly declaring measles a global health priority, the U.S. could have a “chilling effect” on how other countries approach the spread of the virus, Nuzzo said.
Around the world, Nuzzo worries that we are entering a period where people’s fears about measles are diminishing and people are thinking, “I’ll just catch it naturally.”
“Listen, this is a bad disease. You don’t want to catch it, okay?” “It’s thought to bleed your immune system, making you more susceptible to disease… your immune system forgets how to fight infection,” Nuzzo said, adding that it “causes long-term health effects” for those who survive the infection.
Nuzzo said he was concerned that “lies” about measles vaccines, the United States’ “biggest export,” were making the entire world more vulnerable.
