Moroccan healthcare worker warns of potential surge in measles cases after school break

A Moroccan doctor and health policy researcher has raised concerns about a
possible spike in measles cases following the recent school holiday.

“The social mixing from travel and family gatherings during the holidays is likely
to strengthen the disease’s spread, with schoolchildren as the primary carriers,
transmitting the illness to other groups within the population,” Tayeb Hamdi told
Hespress.

Since September 2023, measles cases in Morocco have surged due to low
vaccination rates, according to Mohamed El Youbi, Director of Epidemiology and
Disease Control at the Ministry of Health and Social Protection.

Over 25,000 cases and 120 deaths have been recorded since then, with the Ministry of Health reporting that 42% of fatalities occurred in children under five, while 24% affected individuals over 37, Hespress reported.

Hamdi emphasized that while the COVID-19 pandemic and parental vaccine
hesitancy have contributed to the decline in immunization rates, they do not fully
explain the situation.

Last week, Youbi called for urgent action during an online conference, warning
that the outbreak poses a broader threat.

"This epidemic, which spares no age group or region, raises alarms about other
diseases, such as whooping cough and tetanus. Morocco must prioritize
immunization to safeguard future generations," he stated, as reported by Morocco
World News.

The highest infection rates have been recorded in the Tangier-Tetouan-Al Hoceima
and Fez-Meknes regions, followed by Rabat-Salé-Kénitra.