Devex: WHO says international spread of polio still a public health emergency
“The international spread of polio virus continues to be a problem four years after the WHO’s Emergency Committee designated it a public health emergency of international concern. The committee on Friday announced it would extend the emergency by another three months, after data showed an uptick in the number of polio cases worldwide in 2018, including a doubling in Afghanistan. The decision was made after the committee met at World Health Organization’s headquarters in Geneva on Nov. 27 to review the data on wild poliovirus cases and circulating vaccine derived polioviruses. The committee was also concerned that weakened immunization systems in several regions in Africa and Pakistan were leading to an increased risk of outbreaks…” (Ravindran, 11/30).

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