The World Health Organization has warned of a “dangerous comeback” of vaccine preventable diseases across East Asia and the Pacific, as supported by the rising cases of measles in the Philippines, which has grown eight percent higher than the same period last year.
Based on data from the Department of Health, a total of 2,118 measles-rubella (MR) cases were recorded nationwide as of May 10. The National Capital Region posted the most number of cases with 642, followed by Calabarzon – 289, Mimaropa – 148, Central Luzon – 146, and Zamboanga Peninsula with 137.
In comparison, Mongolia recorded 2,682 cases as of May 21, while Cambodia confirmed 2,150 cases between January and April.
Despite the rise in measles infections, vaccination coverage remains alarmingly low. Fully Immunized Child coverage, or children who received all recommended vaccines, reached only 64.85 percent, far below the WHO recommended annual immunization rate of 95 percent.
The WHO said that measles cases in the Western Pacific Region are now at their highest level since 2020, signaling that many children are missing out on essential, life-saving vaccinations. “Measles is among the most infectious diseases in the world, with the potential to cause severe illness and death, especially in children,” it stated.
Health officials are raising the alarm over the growing number of unvaccinated children. WHO estimates that around 3.2 million children in the Western Pacific Region did not receive a single vaccine dose between 2020 and 2023 – leaving them highly vulnerable to outbreaks.
WHO has pointed out the growing vaccine hesitancy that is driven by misinformation, disinformation, and public distrust as a major barrier to improving immunization rates.
Our Department of Health has been trying to encourage and promote vaccination as part of its efforts to hit the immunization rate targets that are necessary to protect the population from vaccine preventable diseases that could be highly infectious or deadly if allowed to make a comeback. All that effort will be for naught if we do not cooperate, and for that we need to be better informed to make the right choices. For those who still have doubts, doing our own research, as long as it is based on facts and scientific evidence, would be the best course of action.*
