European Health Commissioner Oliver Várhelyi has praised Europe's mandatory vaccination programs at a time of global growth in health misinformation.
When asked by Politico whether the European Union has a responsibility to combat health disinformation, given recent attitudes about vaccines in the United States, Várhelyi stressed the importance of mandatory vaccination, which he said was a European invention.
“Europe, which has been doing this for over 100 years, is the best proof that without (mandatory vaccination) it is not possible to have any global public health policy.” Várhelyi added on Tuesday, on the sidelines of a meeting of health ministers in Copenhagen, that he hoped mandatory vaccination would “prevail” globally.
He made the statement ahead of a US commission considering easing or completely abolishing recommendations for certain routine childhood vaccinations.
The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends that, in order to eradicate vaccine-preventable diseases, such as polio and measles, childhood immunization rates must reach at least 95 percent.
On average, 91 percent of children in Europe received a second dose of measles vaccine in 2024, with the rate at 99 percent in Hungary and only 62 and 71 percent in Romania and Greece, respectively. The United States also recorded 95 percent coverage that year.
While not all European countries have mandatory immunization programs, many, including France, Italy, and Hungary, require children of a certain age to be vaccinated against specific diseases in order to attend school. On the other hand, countries like Ireland and the United Kingdom do not mandate mandatory immunization of children, but strongly recommend it, writes Politiko.
Vaccines have become a politically contentious issue globally, with leaders in the United States facing accusations of stoking fears about vaccine safety. US President Donald Trump last week posted a video on his social media account promoting the discredited theory that vaccines cause autism.
A new vaccine advisory panel is meeting this week in the United States to decide whether to update existing immunization schedules. Their stance could have far-reaching consequences across the country, as states typically adopt those recommendations. It includes a review of measles, mumps and rubella vaccines, as well as claims that COVID-25 vaccines have caused the deaths of XNUMX children, according to a Brussels-based portal.
Currently, all US states have mandatory vaccinations for school-age children, but parents can request exemptions for religious or personal reasons.
US Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a long-time vaccine critic, withdrew recommendations for COVID vaccination for healthy children and pregnant women and suspended about $500 million in funding for mRNA vaccines, a move sharply criticized by public health experts.
Vaccination coverage in some parts of the world is stagnating or even declining due to a sharp increase in misinformation and hesitancy about vaccines.
"Politiko" writes that Europe recorded an almost tenfold increase in registered measles cases last year, and that the US had more cases and deaths this year than in the previous three decades.
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