Well Being: Measles- Truth Versus Fiction
and why we will continue to have outbreaks
Measles was declared eliminated from the United States in 2000 due to a lack of continuous disease spread for more than 12 months (CDC). This was considered an outstanding achievement, and the CDC credited a highly effective vaccination program, with improved measles control in the Americas region. The truth is that almost as soon as measles was “eliminated” from the USA, once again outbreaks began to occur.
Measles will most likely never be eradicated or eliminated in the USA or worldwide, even though it fits the criteria for a disease that theoretically could be eliminated. Scientists and public health agencies like to tout that the measles virus is relatively stable, animal reservoirs are not considered to exist (although debatable, as some primates have a significant minority of animals with antibodies against measles), and it is relatively easy to diagnose. Unfortunately, eliminating the measles virus globally is not as simple as it seems.
Measles is a highly infectious disease. Therefore, in order to achieve herd immunity by dosing with the currently available leaky vaccines, it is estimated that there would need to be 95% vaccine coverage worldwide; currently, low-income countries have about 68% of their population vaccinated.
The MMR vaccine is officially said to have a failure rate of around 5% among vaccinated individuals. While this may seem like a small percentage, it translates to roughly 3 million children aged 1-17 in the USA who are presumed to be protected but are probably not. Like many diseases, a mild case of measles after vaccination can be asymptomatic, which means individuals can spread the disease without knowing that they are infected (PubMed).
Millions of people travel in and out of the U.S. yearly, so the USA will continue to experience more outbreaks, as the rate of measles infections in low-income countries is much higher. Due to regional variations in vaccine acceptance and the fact that there are concentrated locations where international travelers land, including due to the influx of economic migrants from regions where measles is endemic, these outbreaks will most likely be concentrated in specific areas. The chart below demonstrates that this has happened with the latest outbreak.
Families are capable of evaluating the risks and benefits of getting vaccinated.
Every medicine has risk. Beyond whether vaccines cause autism, serious adverse events from vaccination are not unheard of. Although current data are not definitive, largely due to underreporting, it is almost impossible to ascertain how many serious adverse events occur after measles-mumps-rubella vaccination. Parents have every right to be cautious about vaccinating their child, particularly after the jab disaster of the CovidCrisis.
A personal risk-benefit analysis regarding vaccination, informed by fully transparent access to relevant data, and the freedom to act on that analysis is something that every parent and patient should have the right to undertake.
This is what informed consent and freedom of choice are all about.
Secretary Kennedy is not the cause of this current outbreak.
One narrative currently being promoted in various left-wing legacy (dead) media that Secretary RFK Jr is somehow responsible for the current outbreak of measles is nothing more than political propaganda. There is no merit to this - it is intentional slander with no factual basis. But there are fact-based hypotheses that clarify the real factors that appear to be contributing to what is likely to be a self-limited outbreak based on similar recent measles group infection events.
One fascinating hypothesis that recently came my way is that herd immunity against measles in the U.S. is decreasing yearly. But not for the reasons mentioned above. Immunity in the USA against measles is declining because older citizens, who have lifelong immunity to measles, are aging out of society (Casaris, 2014). The USA now has a predominantly MMR-vaccinated population, which has less immunity than those who were exposed to the disease, typically in childhood. The implication is that vaccine-resistant cases of measles are and will become more commonplace.
Secondary vaccine failure occurs when an individual initially develops an adequate immune response to vaccination, but this protection wanes over time, leaving them susceptible to infection. This is referred to as a lack of vaccine “durability”.
Vaccine-induced immunity from the measles vaccine is less long-lasting than immunity from natural infection. One study found that 20% of measles vaccinated individuals lacked detectable anti-measles IgG compared to only 6% of those with a history of measles infection (Bianchi, 2020).
However, the continued headline hysterics over a few hundred cases yearly only leads to more fear and confusion.
The bottom line is that as international travel increases and the vaccine failure rate of the MMR vaccine increases over time, there will be more measles cases and outbreaks in the USA. This problem won’t be solved with more mandates for the vaccination of school-aged children.
Regarding Measles Vaccines:
I was a primary expert witness in a qui tam court case for the plaintiff against a significant vaccine company over the MMR vaccine.
This case lasted over a decade, only ending in 2024. As that case has now ended in the fall of 2024, I am unsure whether I am still limited in what I can write regarding specific MMR vaccine recommendations. I am forever prohibited from doing Measles vaccine research consequent to the proprietary data I was required to review when developing my expert opinion. As an aside, that case was thrown out on a technicality, not on its merits.
However, a review of 69 published studies of measles vaccine effectiveness worldwide from 1969 to 2006 found a median measles vaccine effectiveness estimated to be 77% when administered between 9 and 11 months of age and 92% at 12 months or older. These findings are consistent with other immunogenicity studies (Uzicanin, 2011).
As measles is not a common disease in the USA, vaccinating early (if at all) is not in the interests of a child.
The CDC vaccine schedule requires the first dose of the MMR to be administered at 12-15 months. If I were a parent and wished to use the MMR vaccine, I would push out that timeline of 12 to 15 months much further, basically until at least the child is school-aged. That is, of course, unless international travel was imminent or my child was in a situation where many children from overseas were present.
The disease severity distribution with measles outbreaks shows a bimodal distribution: the two most affected populations are infants aged less than 1 year and adults older than 20 years. Due to the vaccine being relatively ineffective in infants, as noted, it is not recommended for those under a year. Infants receiving antibodies from their mothers during pregnancy and through breastfeeding also protect against measles.
However, a measles infection as an adult can lead to more severe outcomes.
At some point, vaccinating a child past the toddler age against measles is reasonable, particularly if international travel is planned. But again, that is my opinion and not professional advice.
On the other hand, there are so few cases of measles in the United States that being unvaccinated, if not traveling to countries, is most likely never going to result in contracting measles.
On the other hand…
And around and around we go. No clear cut answers, because we do not have the data required to draw definitive conclusions. Because the CDC and FDA and NIH have not done the necessary work, or to the extent that they have, the results have not been disclosed in an open and transparent manner.
For clarity:
Measles and German measles (rubella) are two distinct viral infections. The rubeola virus causes measles, while the rubella virus causes German measles.
Measles is generally more severe and can be life-threatening, particularly in young children. It can lead to serious complications such as blindness, encephalitis, severe diarrhea, and pneumonia.
German measles is typically milder but can be dangerous for pregnant women, as it may affect the developing fetus or increase the risk of miscarriage. Infection during the first 12 weeks of pregnancy is the most dangerous, with up to a 90% chance of the baby developing Congenital Rubella Syndrome (CRS). CRS defects include Deafness (most common), eye problems, cardiovascular defects, liver and spleen damage, low birth weight, and bone marrow issues.