measles vaccine

The Global Measles Laboratory is 'under severe threat of collapse' as U.S. pulls funding

4:19am March 20, 2025

by Gabrielle Emanuel

That's the perspective of a World Health Organization official after the Global Measles and Rubella Laboratory Network, which detects and controls measles, lost its sole funder.

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As the Texas outbreak grows, how contagious is measles, really?

7:00am February 28, 2025

Vaccination eliminated measles from the U.S. 25 years ago. But it can still spread in pockets where vaccination rates are low, like the west Texas county with a current outbreak. Here's how fast.

Study participants in The Gambia received a measles vaccine through a virtually pain-free sticker. Early data on adults and children as young as nine months suggest the syringe-free skin patch is safe and effective.

Virtually ouch-free: Promising early data on a measles vaccine delivered via sticker

6:19am May 26, 2023

by Fran Kritz

Vaccine experts are excited about new clinical trial results for a device that delivers measles vaccine via a "microarray" patch — no syringe needed.

Bivalent COVID-19 vaccines are readied for use at a clinic in Richmond, Va., Nov. 2022. Just 15% of eligible Americans have gotten the most recent booster shot, according to the CDC.

It's not too late to get a COVID booster — especially for older adults

5:01am December 28, 2022

by Selena Simmons-Duffin

Public health officials want more Americans to get the latest COVID vaccine booster. Only 35% of people over 65 have gotten the shot, though 75% of COVID deaths are among people in this age group.

Pediatrician Laura Blaisdell, co-chair of Maine Families for Vaccines, joined supporters at the Augusta State House in February for a campaign event.

Vaccine Exemptions Are On The Ballot In Maine, After A New Law Divided Parents

5:34pm March 03, 2020

by Patty Wight

Maine passed a new law last year to increase childhood immunization rates. The law, not yet in effect, would forbid religious and philosophical exemptions — if it's not repealed on Super Tuesday.

Samoa's Prime Minister Tuilaepa Sailele Malielegaoi, pictured in 2018, pleaded with the public not to turn to "alternative cures" for measles.

Samoan Government To Close Its Offices Amid Measles Crisis That Has Left 53 Dead

4:32pm December 02, 2019

by Vanessa Romo

Forty-eight of the fatalities were children under 4 years old. The number of immunizations plummeted last year after improperly prepared vaccines led to the deaths of two infants.

Health & Safety

Measles Outbreak Kills Dozens Of Kids On Samoa And Infects Thousands More

12:17pm December 01, 2019

by Lulu Garcia-Navarro

Samoa is under a state of emergency as its health system struggles with the crisis. NPR's Lulu Garcia-Navarro speaks to the editor of the Samoa Observer, Keni Lesah.

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New research illuminates how the measles virus may suppress the immune system after an infection.

Health & Safety

Measles Virus May Wipe Out Immune Protection For Other Diseases

4:26pm October 31, 2019

by Emily Vaughn

Another reason not to skip the measles vaccine: A measles infection may cause lasting harm to the immune system, research finds, making patients more vulnerable to other diseases.

The measles virus is highly contagious. If someone with measles coughs or sneezes, the virus in those droplets can survive for two hours afterward — infecting about 90% of the people lacking immunity who pass through that space.

Millennial And Gen-X Travelers: Need Another Measles Shot?

6:43am September 02, 2019

by April Dembosky

Americans born in the '70s and '80s may not be immune to measles, health officials say. If you're traveling to a country or region having an outbreak, consider a second dose of vaccine before you go.

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Band-aid at the ready, Sara McRae, a medical assistant at Unity Health Care, heads in to vaccinate a pediatric patient.

Health & Safety

The Other Reasons Kids Aren't Getting Vaccinations: Poverty And Health Care Access

12:03am May 21, 2019

by Selena Simmons-Duffin

Religious and ideological opposition to vaccines has fueled the current measles outbreak. But there's another factor driving low vaccination rates in some communities: poverty.

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