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Global immunisation efforts led to 88 per cent drop in measles deaths since 2000; but cases surge: WHO

NEW DELHI: An estimated 95,000 people, mostly children younger than 5 years of age, died due to measles in 2024, said a new WHO report released on Friday. The World Health Organisation (WHO) report, however, said that global immunisation efforts have led to an 88% drop in measles deaths between 2000 and 2024. Nearly 59 million lives have been saved by the measles vaccine since 2000, it said. The WHO said that though the 2024 death toll is among the lowest annual tolls recorded since 2000, every death from a disease that could be prevented with a highly effective and low-cost vaccine is unacceptable. Despite fewer deaths, measles cases are surging worldwide, with an estimated 11 million infections in 2024 nearly 8,00,000 more than pre-pandemic levels in 2019. Measles is the world's most contagious virus, and these data show once again how it will exploit any gap in our collective defences against it, said Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General. Measles does not respect borders, but when every child in every community is vaccinated against it, costly outbreaks can be avoided, lives can be saved, and this disease can be eliminated from entire nations. Measles cases in 2024 increased by 86% in the WHO Eastern Mediterranean Region, 47% in the European Region, and 42% in South-East Asian Region compared with 2019. However, the African Region experienced a 40% decline in cases and 50% decline in deaths over this period, partly due to increasing immunisation coverage. While recent measles surges are occurring in countries and regions where children are less likely to die due to better nutrition and access to health care, those infected remain at risk of serious, lifelong complications such as blindness, pneumonia, and encephalitis (an infection causing brain swelling and potentially brain damage). In 2024, an estimated 84% of children received their first dose of the measles vaccine, and only 76% received the second, according to WHO/UNICEF estimates. This is a slight improvement from the previous year, with 2 million more children immunised. According to WHO guidance, at least 95% coverage with two measles vaccine doses is required to stop transmission and protect communities from outbreaks. More than 30 million children remained under-protected against measles in 2024. The Immunisation Agenda 2030 (IA2030) Mid-Term Review, also released today, stresses that measles is often the first disease to resurge when vaccination coverage drops. Growing measles outbreaks are exposing weaknesses in immunisation programmes and health systems globally, and threatening progress towards IA2030 targets, including measles elimination. In 2024, 59 countries reported large or disruptive measles outbreaks nearly triple the number reported in 2021 and the highest since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. All regions except the Americas had at least one country experiencing a large outbreak in 2024. The situation changed in 2025 with numerous countries in the Americas battling outbreaks. Efforts to scale up measles surveillance have improved WHO and countries' abilities to identify and respond to outbreaks, and for some countries to achieve elimination. By the end of 2024, 81 countries (42%) had eliminated measles, with only three additional countries since before the pandemic. Measles has resurged in recent years, even in high-income countries that once eliminated it, because immunisation rates have dropped below the 95% threshold. Even when overall coverage is high nationally, pockets of unvaccinated communities with lower coverage rates can leave people at risk and result in outbreaks and ongoing transmission. To achieve measles elimination, strong political commitment and sustained investment are needed to ensure all children receive two doses of the measles vaccine and surveillance systems can rapidly detect outbreaks.