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Disruptions to health systems during the COVID-19 pandemic have led to a dangerous backslide in childhood vaccination rates globally. Over 60 million children have missed out on standard immunizations.
This is now resulting in severe outbreaks of vaccine-preventable diseases that primarily kill children, like measles, diphtheria, and polio across multiple countries. Deaths from measles spiked 43% in 2022 compared to 2021.
“The decline in vaccination coverage during the Covid-19 pandemic led us directly to this situation of rising diseases and child deaths,” said Ephrem Lemango, associate director of immunization for UNICEF, which supports delivery of vaccines to almost half the world’s children every year. “With each new outbreak, the toll on vulnerable communities rises. We need to move fast now and make the investment needed to catch up the children that were missed during the pandemic.”
Many children missed their initial shots and have now aged out of routine vaccination programs. Reaching them requires catch-up campaigns, but there has been little momentum as health systems focus on "returning to normalcy" post-pandemic.
Additional challenges include disinformation eroding parental vaccine confidence, ongoing conflicts displacing populations, supply constraints, and gaps in convenient access.
Experts urge immediate investment in targeted catch-up immunization blitzes, especially for deadly diseases like measles where two doses are required for herd immunity. Allowing preventable childhood diseases to spread unchecked can turn minor outbreaks into full-blown health crises in vulnerable communities.
The pandemic backslide in vital childhood vaccination threatens years of progress. Swift coordinated efforts are needed to close immunity gaps before they become impossible to contain.
Disruptions to health systems during the COVID-19 pandemic have led to a dangerous backslide in childhood vaccination rates globally. Over 60 million children have missed out on standard immunizations.
This is now resulting in severe outbreaks of vaccine-preventable diseases that primarily kill children, like measles, diphtheria, and polio across multiple countries. Deaths from measles spiked 43% in 2022 compared to 2021.
“The decline in vaccination coverage during the Covid-19 pandemic led us directly to this situation of rising diseases and child deaths,” said Ephrem Lemango, associate director of immunization for UNICEF, which supports delivery of vaccines to almost half the world’s children every year. “With each new outbreak, the toll on vulnerable communities rises. We need to move fast now and make the investment needed to catch up the children that were missed during the pandemic.”
Many children missed their initial shots and have now aged out of routine vaccination programs. Reaching them requires catch-up campaigns, but there has been little momentum as health systems focus on "returning to normalcy" post-pandemic.
Additional challenges include disinformation eroding parental vaccine confidence, ongoing conflicts displacing populations, supply constraints, and gaps in convenient access.
Experts urge immediate investment in targeted catch-up immunization blitzes, especially for deadly diseases like measles where two doses are required for herd immunity. Allowing preventable childhood diseases to spread unchecked can turn minor outbreaks into full-blown health crises in vulnerable communities.
The pandemic backslide in vital childhood vaccination threatens years of progress. Swift coordinated efforts are needed to close immunity gaps before they become impossible to contain.
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