Democratic Republic of Congo measles deaths top 1,000 - UN Press Release
(26 July 2011, UN Press Release) --- A measles outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has killed 1,145 children so far this year, the United Nations (UN) said today. The group's Office of Humanitarian Affairs said the epidemic has sickened 115,600 children this year. The totals reflect a steep rise: last year the country reported 5,407 infections and 82 deaths. A UN-coordinated campaign has vaccinated 3.1 million children. The $1.9 million vaccination drive, which launched on May 10, targeted youngsters in the country's Katanga, Kasai Occidental, Bas-Congo, Equateur, and Orientale provinces. Fidele Sarasso, the UN's humanitarian coordinator in the DRC, said in the statement, "We thank our partners and urge them to continue supporting us, especially now that DRC is facing other epidemics, including cholera in the west of the country."
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And in the United States, Canada, Britain, and other so called civilized nations parents are doing what would be unthinkable in the DRC - NOT IMMUNIZING THEIR CHILDREN. When children are sick and dying of measles around you very few parents would say no to the opportunity to possible prevent their child's illness or death.
Of course, one can argue that the chance of getting measles is very low in the US, but until vaccination for measles became available in the US these statistics could have applied to our own nation.
I wonder what anti-vaccine parents would do if epidemic measles returned to the USA.....not just the occasional cluster of cases, but across the country.......
Gambling with their kids lives - whether to vaccinate or not. Statistically very low risk of an adverse reaction to vaccination versus a significant risk of complications of measles if they were to be exposed.
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How is this a risk to our national security, survival or sustainability?
Epidemic disease (think Black Plague, smallpox, 1918 Influenza Pandemic, cholera, yellow fever, etc...) has profound impacts on the functioning of society, industry, business, and government.
The profound effects on:
a. lost productivity (direct by the worker being affected, and indirectly by the worker serving as caretaker to sick family members),
b. cost (direct and indirect healthcare costs, overwhelming private and public medical services & hospitals),
c. family (prolonged illness, disability and death of family members),
and
d. government (loss of services and support as workers at municipal, county, state and federal levels)
cannot be simply qualified or quantified.
An Ounce Of Prevention Is Worth A Pound Of Cure!
* * * * * * * * * * * *
And in the United States, Canada, Britain, and other so called civilized nations parents are doing what would be unthinkable in the DRC - NOT IMMUNIZING THEIR CHILDREN. When children are sick and dying of measles around you very few parents would say no to the opportunity to possible prevent their child's illness or death.
Of course, one can argue that the chance of getting measles is very low in the US, but until vaccination for measles became available in the US these statistics could have applied to our own nation.
I wonder what anti-vaccine parents would do if epidemic measles returned to the USA.....not just the occasional cluster of cases, but across the country.......
Gambling with their kids lives - whether to vaccinate or not. Statistically very low risk of an adverse reaction to vaccination versus a significant risk of complications of measles if they were to be exposed.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
How is this a risk to our national security, survival or sustainability?
Epidemic disease (think Black Plague, smallpox, 1918 Influenza Pandemic, cholera, yellow fever, etc...) has profound impacts on the functioning of society, industry, business, and government.
The profound effects on:
a. lost productivity (direct by the worker being affected, and indirectly by the worker serving as caretaker to sick family members),
b. cost (direct and indirect healthcare costs, overwhelming private and public medical services & hospitals),
c. family (prolonged illness, disability and death of family members),
and
d. government (loss of services and support as workers at municipal, county, state and federal levels)
cannot be simply qualified or quantified.
An Ounce Of Prevention Is Worth A Pound Of Cure!
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