Good news if you live in America! According to the Pan American Health Organization, the Americas are the first region in the world to eliminate the endemic transmission of measles. It took 22 years of mass vaccination efforts, but it’s now one less thing we have to worry about.
The measles mostly affects children but can cause serious illness, such as pneumonia, blindness, brain swelling, and it’s one of the leading causes of death among young children, even though a vaccine exists.
The measles will join other diseases that have been eradicated, such as smallpox, polio, rubella, and congenital rubella syndrome, which is great news.
