<
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/apr/18/romania-eu-measles-cases-vaccination-rates-collapse>
"By 10am on a spring day, the corridor of the clinic in the Transylvanian town
of Săcele was already crowded with parents and children. They were all waiting
to see Dr Mirela Csabai, one of just seven general practitioners serving a
population of more than 30,000.
Most of the cases that morning were routine: colds, checkups, chronic
conditions. The calm, however, is recent. In 2024, a measles epidemic tore
through this community and left one unvaccinated toddler dead.
“As long as vaccination rates remain low, it’s a powder keg,” says Csabai.
“Once an epidemic starts, it is already too late to vaccinate. We need to act
now.”
Romania is facing the worst measles crisis in the EU. The country has had four
epidemics of the illness since 2005, each separated by only a few years of
fragile calm.
Between 2023 and 2025, it recorded more than 35,000 cases and at least 30
deaths, most of them infants too young to be vaccinated, infected by older,
unvaccinated children. About 87% of all measles cases in the EU were reported
in Romania in 2024; the next most affected country, Italy, recorded just over
1,000. Measles can cause serious complications, especially in children and
infants, who can develop pneumonia and in some cases encephalitis.
The crisis has a single, measurable root: a collapse in vaccination. The first
dose for the MMR vaccine is recommended at between 14 and 18 months, and while
coverage rises to 81% by the later age (from just 47.4% at 14 months), it still
falls well short of the 95% threshold needed for herd immunity.
Uptake of the second dose at five is just over 60% nationally and as low as 20%
in some communities, according to the National Institute of Public Health.
Romania’s MMR rate stood above the European average of 93% in 2010 but has been
falling ever since, a decline that accelerated after the Covid-19 pandemic.
“It’s absolutely insufficient for measles,” says Dr Aurora Stanescu, an
epidemiologist at the institute. “A firm political commitment to limit the
number of deaths is necessary. This is a national security issue.”"
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
