The Americas, led by Canada, is on brink of losing measles-elimination status

28 points by divbzero 3 months ago | 8 comments

michael1999
Interesting to learn this wasn't really covid-related.
more_corn
Because of anti-vax bullshit. We really need a better answer for dealing with dangerous bullshit. The current one is insufficient.
- pants2
  > the province’s Chief Medical Officer of Health Kieran Moore reported that cases were being disproportionately seen in Mennonite, Amish, and other Anabaptist communities.
  These communities are more than "anti-vaxx." Likely the vaccination rate in most of Canada is sufficient to make R0 < 1, but in these communities that eschew modern anything and have a near-zero vaccination rate, it's now endemic.
- ahmeneeroe-v2
  [flagged]
  jleyank
  No, it's native religious, conservative and/or anti-vax (or all three). While immigrants might have brought the virus, it thrives in areas where "modern medicine" is frowned upon.
  ahmeneeroe-v2
  [flagged]
  rayiner
  [flagged]
  michael1999
  No. This is not a new problem. Measles, mumps, whooping cough, etc. are all problems that were basically eradicated in the mainstream population. But the Mennonites, Hutterites, etc. are having outbreaks. If you have stacks of dry tinder, you're gonna have a fire. The only question is when.
  The "immigrants" that spread this one were Ontarians visiting New Brunswick and bringing it back to Ontario. Do you want vaccine passports at provincial borders now?
  https://www.ctvnews.ca/toronto/article/measles-outbreak-trac...
  Here's a case where a Mennonite kid who brought it home after catching it from an unvaccinated 9-year-old from the UK while on a trip to Disneyland (see p 251). Are you blaming that on "immigrants"? TBH - your comment presents as nothing more than lazy racism.
  https://www.canada.ca/content/dam/phac-aspc/migration/phac-a...
  The Anabaptist communities are well aware that they are at special risk when the whole community opts-out. What's changed is they are starting to travel and build a truly international community. Once you combine international travel and a vaccine-hesitant community, you're going to have trouble. Immigrants have nothing to do with this.
  https://www.mennoniteusa.org/measles/
  2002 - https://www.immunize.ca/sites/default/files/resources/74e.pd... 2015 - https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/immunization-rates-so... 2025 - https://www.ctvnews.ca/toronto/article/measles-outbreak-trac...
  rayiner
  Many people in Ontario are immigrants.
  michael1999
  Do you think this Mennonite kid who went to Disneyland and brought back measles was an immigrant? Do you think an immigrant brought measles to the International Mennonite gathering in New Brunswick? You seem fixed on blaming immigrants for no reason.
  jleyank
  Somebody could have visited Canada from one of the US outbreaks or vice versa. All one needs is a spark. And if you're relying on herd immunity, it's polite and safer to be part of the herd.