By The Associated Press
LONDON (AP) — The coronavirus pandemic is interrupting immunization against diseases including measles, polio and cholera that could put the lives of nearly 80 million children under the age of 1 at risk, according to a new analysis from the World Health Organization and partners.
In a new report issued on Friday, health officials warned that more than half of 129 countries where immunization data were available reported moderate, severe or total suspensions of vaccination services during March and April.
Officials also noted that 46 campaigns to vaccinate children against polio have been suspended in 38 countries, mostly in Africa, as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.
In April, WHO and partners reluctantly recommended a temporary halt to mass polio immunization campaigns aimed at eradicating the paralytic disease, recognizing the move would lead to a resurgence of the highly infectious, water-borne disease.
Wiping out polio requires that more than 90% of children be immunized, which is typically done in mass campaigns involving millions of health workers that would break social distancing guidelines needed to stop the spread of COVID-19.
