Measles virus spreading in Poland

The virus has been prevalent in the western side of the country close to Germany, where over 600 people have already contracted the virus, with 250 in January alone.

In recent days, Polish media have reported on a sick girl in a Wrocław hospital who recently arrived into the country from Berlin. The girl had not been vaccinated.

A nine year old boy and a 13-month-old girl with suspected measles are currently under observation in a hospital in Poznań, in the west of the country.

Last year, 110 cases of measles were reported in Poland.

In 2010 there were only 13 cases, but the figure had almost tripled by the following year.
“We let down our guard slightly, because we still have a high vaccination rate of around 90 percent,” Monika Wróbel-Harmas, a spokesperson for the National Institute of Public Health, told the Gazeta Wyborcza daily.

“Unfortunately, the number of parents who decide not to vaccinate their children is steadily increasing. Perhaps not this year, but definitely in the next, we [in Poland] will have similar problems as in other European countries.”

Gazeta Wyborcza says that in order for the virus not to cause a pandemic, as many as 95 percent of the population needs to be vaccinated.

Since the vaccination is obligator in Poland, parents who do not vaccinate their children for measles, could be slapped with a fine of 1,500 zloty – or around 360 euro. Last year 220 people were fined by local voidvodships. (rg)