MACON, Ga. — The World Health Organization says people choosing not to vaccinate their kids is now a “global health threat.”
"Vaccine hesitancy – the reluctance or refusal to vaccinate despite the availability of vaccines – threatens to reverse progress made in tackling vaccine-preventable diseases," the World Health Organization website says.
The rising number of measles cases across the country can be argued as evidence of the problem. It was considered eliminated in the U.S. back in 2000.
In 2018, 349 individual cases of measles were confirmed in 26 states and the District of Columbia.
That’s the second-greatest number of annual cases reported since measles was eliminated in the U.S. in 2000. For reference, the greatest was 667 cases reported in 2014.
While most children are receiving recommended immunizations, the number of children who aren't being vaccinated by 24-months-old has been gradually increasing across the country, a report released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said.
Nationally, uninsured and Medicaid-insured children were less likely to be vaccinated, according to the 2017 survey. The survey used data from the 2017 National Immunization Survey-Child and focused on children ages 19- to 35-months-old.
Since 2001, the percentage of unvaccinated babies and toddlers quadrupled from 0.3 percent to 1.3 percent in 2015.