Vaccination for Latin American children has dropped at an alarming rate

According to UNICEF, 1 in 4 children in Latin America and the Caribbean do not receive a calendar Routine vaccinationsmaking them susceptible to dangerous diseases.

Over the past five years, the complete immunization schedule for diseases such as diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis (whooping cough) in Latin America and the Caribbean has fallen from 90% in 2015 to 76% in 2016, UNICEF experts say. 2020. UNICEF asserts that nearly 2.5 million Latin American children have not been vaccinated against diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis. Among them, 1.5 million children have not even received any vaccine.

Vaccine coverage began to show signs of decline before the COVID-19 pandemic broke out, and the COVID-19 epidemic has aggravated the situation as vaccination facilities were forced to downsize. while people are afraid of being infected when going to medical centers.

In addition, according to UNICEF’s maternal and newborn health expert Ralph Midy in Latin America and the Caribbean, over the past five years, governments in the region have turned their attention to public health issues. other emerging, such as Zika disease, chikungunya febrile illness and more recently COVID-19. Along with that, the existence of difficult-to-locate migrant populations and those living in isolated and hard-to-reach areas also hinder the vaccination process.

1.5 million children in Latin America and the Caribbean have not even received any vaccinations. (Photo: PAHO)

UNICEF warns that reducing immunization coverage is a “dangerous step backwards”. This puts the minor’s health at risk with lifelong consequences. In addition, declining vaccination rates also facilitate infectious diseases such as measles, which originates from a highly contagious virus.

United Nations data shows that, while in 2013 there were almost 500 cases of measles, by 2019 that number has risen to more than 23,000. Similar to diphtheria, from 5 cases recorded in 2013 to nearly 900 cases in 2019.

UNICEF Regional Director for Latin America and the Caribbean, Jean Gough emphasized, during the post-COVID-19 recovery period, countries in the region need to take immediate action to prevent coverage vaccines for children further decline, because the outbreak of infectious diseases will pose a serious risk to the whole society.

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