Global measles surge 'being fuelled by misinformation

Crumbling health systems and 'decline in living standards' could also be behind waning vaccination rates, say scientists

- ALEX CROFT OLIVIA IRELAND

Declining living standards and online misinformation is fuelling a global surge in measles, experts have warned, decades after the spread of the disease was curbed by vaccination programmes.

Dr Ben Kasstan-Dabush, a medical anthropologist at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, warned that a “generational decline in living standards” was among the factors behind declining immunisation rates across the world.

He also blamed a “vicious” austerity programme introduced by former chancellor George Osborne for a decline in NHS vaccination rates in the UK.

His comments followed a recent report by the World Health Organisation (WHO) warning that the rise in measles cases is a consequence of declining vaccine rates - and that other diseases prevented by vaccination could be next.

“It’s a global story,” Dr Kasstan-Dabush told The Independent. “The issue of declining vaccination coverage can’t really be separated from the bigger picture of declining standards of child and adult health.”

The UK alone has had an 831 per cent increase in the last decade. Data from the UK Health Security Agency reveals that 847 cases were recorded between January to November this year, while in 2015 there were just 91 cases.

Last year was one of the highest for measles in the UK, as the health agency recorded 2,911 confirmed cases.