United States: According to the latest report, Minnesota and Wisconsin are the two states lagging behind every other state in the US regarding the measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine among kindergarteners.
More about the news
In a recent CDC report, both Idaho and Alaska have lower MMR vaccination for kindergarteners than Minnesota and Wisconsin.
In Minnesota, of 66032 kindergartners included in the study, 87 percent had received both doses of MMR, and in Wisconsin, of the surveyed 62028 kindergartners, 84.8 percent had their two doses.
Alaska is just slightly behind Wisconsin, at 84.3 percent, while Idaho has the lowest rate in the nation, at 79.6 percent of both first and second doses of the MMR vaccine, fox9.com reported.
What is the context?
Almost all cases have occurred in Hennepin County, and the disease has taken its toll on the recently arrived Somali Americans especially. More worryingly, the large majority of infections are not linked to travel but acquired domestically.
Due to this outbreak, the Minnesota Department of Health has updated parent guidance, with authorities encouraging parents to have their children get their second dose earlier.
What experts have to say?
According to the response of the Wisconsin health officials reacting to the CDC data, several insights have been put forward.
According to Paula Tran, the State Health Officer and Division of Public Health Administrator, “While most Wisconsinites are protecting their children with vaccines, we are below where we need to be to protect our state against preventable outbreaks,” fox9.com reported.
“Vaccines are proven to be one of the safest and most effective ways each of us can prevent serious illness and death due to diseases. When the majority of people are vaccinated, it is much harder for that disease to spread in a household, a classroom, or across a community,” Tran added.