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Polio was almost eradicated. Then came the coronavirus. Then came a threat from President Trump.
Source: Washington Post
Polio was almost eradicated. Then came the coronavirus. Then came a threat from President Trump.
By Emily Rauhala, Danielle Paquette and Susannah George
May 15, 2020 at 2:47 p.m. EDT
For decades, the United States has worked with the World Health Organization and others to quash polio, beating back to near extinction a merciless disease that once paralyzed hundreds of thousands of children each year.
That progress is in danger as the pandemic forces health-care providers to suspend door-to-door vaccination campaigns that have slashed the number of infections.
New cases have emerged in Niger and Chad, and fears have mounted about a resurgence in Afghanistan and Pakistan. Although the number of new polio infections has been small — 155 confirmed cases since January — even blips are worrisome, public health experts say, because small increases can trigger explosive outbreaks, especially in poor countries without the resources to combat the virus alone.
“The polio virus is being let free,” said Abdul Qadir, a health worker who has spent the past eight years delivering the vaccine in western Pakistan.
The polio program also risks becoming collateral damage in a political controversy that could hinder eradication efforts long after the pandemic subsides.
Last month, President Trump threatened to cut U.S. funding for polio and every other WHO program over the U.N. agency’s coronavirus response, which he called “China-centric.” ...
-snip-
By Emily Rauhala, Danielle Paquette and Susannah George
May 15, 2020 at 2:47 p.m. EDT
For decades, the United States has worked with the World Health Organization and others to quash polio, beating back to near extinction a merciless disease that once paralyzed hundreds of thousands of children each year.
That progress is in danger as the pandemic forces health-care providers to suspend door-to-door vaccination campaigns that have slashed the number of infections.
New cases have emerged in Niger and Chad, and fears have mounted about a resurgence in Afghanistan and Pakistan. Although the number of new polio infections has been small — 155 confirmed cases since January — even blips are worrisome, public health experts say, because small increases can trigger explosive outbreaks, especially in poor countries without the resources to combat the virus alone.
“The polio virus is being let free,” said Abdul Qadir, a health worker who has spent the past eight years delivering the vaccine in western Pakistan.
The polio program also risks becoming collateral damage in a political controversy that could hinder eradication efforts long after the pandemic subsides.
Last month, President Trump threatened to cut U.S. funding for polio and every other WHO program over the U.N. agency’s coronavirus response, which he called “China-centric.” ...
-snip-
Read more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/polio-was-almost-eradicated-then-came-the-coronavirus-then-came-a-threat-from-president-trump/2020/05/15/ed9d26fe-831c-11ea-81a3-9690c9881111_story.html
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