News

As of last week, the measles case count in the U.S. passed 1000—the second-most cases in a year since the disease was certified eliminated in the U.S. a quarter century ago.
 
And experts worry that, due to the lag in CDC’s data on case numbers in each state, the national total may not be accurately capturing the detail or extent of measles’ spread.
 
Measles vaccines save lives. Learn more and stay involved at shotatlife.org. For more content on the state of health in the U.S., check out @healthforuscampaign

33 years.

According to a recent WHO report, that’s the difference in life expectancy between the world’s highest (84.5 years old in Japan) and lowest (51.5 in Lesotho).

While significant progress has been made in increasing life expectancy, disparity remains pervasive. Universal health coverage—a pillar of this year’s World Health Assembly—is key to addressing this disparity and ensuring long, healthy lives around the globe.

A massive thank you to those who have Advocated to Vaccinate in the last six weeks. For a roundup of this spring’s advocacy efforts, check out our most recent blog! #linkinbio
 
Another advocacy activation has now come and gone, but the stakes are still higher than ever. We are currently facing one of the most turbulent global health environments to date—but YOUR voices are making a difference.
 
The deadline is quickly approaching for a “Dear Colleague” letter to Senate appropriators, asking them to support robust funding for polio eradication in Fiscal Year 2026. We need your help contacting your senators and asking that they add their names in support. Fill out our latest petition to do so at the link in our story.

A recent KFF poll shows that despite shakey trust in government and health agencies, 82% of respondents in the U.S. reported at least a “fair amount” of trust in their health providers—more than any other source—to provide reliable information about vaccines.
 
The front line of these conversations that ultimately build trust in vaccines is made up largely of nurses—both in America and across the world.
 
In a world of misinformation, nurses remain a steadfast voice of assurance. This #InternationalNursesDay, we recognize the vital role of nurses in ensuring that families around the world feel comfortable and confident about immunizations.

The first three months of 2025 have seen more than DOUBLE the total number of yellow fever cases in 2024. 
 
The Pan American Health Organization states that the deadly virus is appearing in areas where it hadn’t been seen recently, with notable surges in the Americas and Africa. 
 
According to researchers, the resurgence of yellow fever is likely due to a lack of vaccination—a problem resulting, in part, from limited in-country vaccine supplies in disease hotspots. With increased population mobility in today’s world, vaccinations against this and other mosquito-borne diseases are crucial to containing their spread.

Immunization is often disconnected from national health security strategy, but #DidYouKnow countries like Uganda and South Africa are leading the charge to change that?
 
Immunization infrastructure is a key part of pandemic preparedness and response and has three critical advantages:
 
🧑‍⚕️ Trusted community networks – essential for quickly communicating risk during outbreaks
🖇️ Cold chain infrastructure – a backbone of commodities distribution
📍 Tracking systems – immunization drives are data-driven, geo-tagged health data that can be used for outbreak warnings
 
Mainstreaming immunization into PPR is not just smart, it’s urgently necessary.

Outbreaks move fast; with vaccines, we can move faster.
 
With outbreaks of highly infectious diseases increasing worldwide, vaccine stockpiles are of vital importance. @gavialliance’s next strategic period will focus on stockpiling to advance rapid response efforts and protect another generation of children from disease.
 
Expanding these global vaccine stockpiles for Ebola, cholera, meningitis, and yellow fever will protect millions when every second counts. 
 
Learn more at https://www.gavi.org/vaccineswork/vaccine-stockpiles-guide [link in story]

According to new research from Stanford University, the U.S. is facing millions of measles cases over the next 25 years if vaccination rates for the disease drop 10%.
 
And the trend is not exclusive to the U.S.: measles is making a dangerous comeback worldwide. In the past year, 138 countries have reported measles cases, with 61 reporting outbreaks. This is the highest number observed since 2019.
 
Misinformation and the global funding crisis is creating deadly roadblocks in our ability to vaccinate millions of children against deadly diseases. Vaccines work—but only if people have access.

New data shows that over 3 million children died from antimicrobial resistance (AMR)-related infections in 2022.
 
Drugs of last resort are increasingly being used to fight these resistant infections, highlighting the dire need for global coordination to control AMR in children.
 
Increased surveillance of AMR must adopt a ‘One Health’ approach to ensure that antibiotic use stays under control, ensuring that everyone, everywhere has a shot at life. #HealthForAll

COVID-19 caused the largest reduction in immunization coverage in a generation, with 23 million children missing out on routine vaccinations in 2020 alone. We are still trying to catch up from this backslide.
 
And now, the United Nations has warned that aid cuts have already set back childhood vaccination levels almost as much as the COVID-19 pandemic.
 
Interruptions in immunization programs and supply chains across the world have led to unprecedented surges in infectious diseases.
 
With #WorldImmunizationWeek drawing to a close, now is the time for action. Visit shotatlife.org to get started.

“To know that there will not be a culture of crawlers… because they hadn’t had equitable access to vaccines. That’s why I will remain committed to a polio-free world.”
 
A few decades ago, polio was paralyzing 1,000 children every day, but today, cases have fallen by 99.9%.
 
Stay tuned tomorrow to hear from @rameshferris, polio survivor and advocate, on the pressing need to fund polio vaccine programs and ensure that everyone, everywhere, has a shot at life.