Vaccination rates in Britain plunged to 85 percent and measles cases rose: 1,000 cases 2011, 1,900 in 2012 and again in 2013. A mumps epidemic made more than 56,000 Britons sick in 2004-2005.
The case count for the measles outbreak linked to Disneyland is steadily ticking upwards. Health officials in more than a dozen states are tracking down thousands of people to try to make sure they don’t spread the virus any further.
It sounds bad, but European health officials say they’re looking at the United States with envy.
To them, America’s current total of just over 100 measles cases looks comparatively good.
“In Europe, we are looking at the American continent as the example of measles elimination.”
Last year, Europe had 3,840 measles cases. Italy alone had 1,921 cases. And that’s an improvement over 2013, when there were more than 10,000 cases across Europe. France has had more than 23,000 cases in the past five years.
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