WHO Declares Polio A World Health Emergency

News outlets report on the WHO’s announcement on Monday that the spread of polio is now a world health emergency.

Associated Press: U.N.: Spread of polio now a world health emergency
“The World Health Organization says the spread of polio is an international public health emergency that threatens to infect other countries with the crippling disease. In an announcement Monday, the agency described the ongoing polio outbreaks in Asia, Africa, and the Middle East as an ‘extraordinary’ situation requiring a coordinated international response…” (5/5).

BBC News: World facing polio health emergency
“…It says Pakistan, Cameroon, and Syria ‘pose the greatest risk of further wild poliovirus exportations in 2014’…” (5/5).

Bloomberg Businessweek: Polio Declared Emergency as Conflicts Fuel Virus Spread
“The spread of polio to countries previously considered free of the crippling disease is a global health emergency, the World Health Organization said, as the virus once driven to the brink of extinction mounts a comeback…” (Bennett, 5/5).

New York Times: Polio Spreading at Alarming Rates, World Health Organization Declares
“Alarmed by the spread of polio from conflict zones in three continents, the World Health Organization on Monday declared the spread of the disease an international health emergency…” (Gladstone, 5/5).

TIME: WHO Declares Health Emergency on Polio
“The World Health Organization declared polio an international health emergency on Monday as the rise in cases threatens eradication efforts and singled out the conflict zones of Syria, Cameroon, and Pakistan as worrisome sources of its spread…” (Park, 5/5).

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