Canada's Measles Elimination Status Revoked After 25 Years
The Public Health Agency of Canada confirmed on Monday that the country has lost its measles elimination status, a designation it had maintained since 1998. This significant development comes after the Pan American Health Organization reviewed epidemiological data confirming sustained transmission of the same measles virus strain in Canada for over a year.
Quebec's Public Health Director Sounds Alarm
Dr. Caroline Quach-Thanh, Quebec's director of public health, expressed disappointment but not surprise at the news. "We were seeing that transmission of the measles was ongoing, and so it was just a matter of time," Quach-Thanh told The Gazette in an exclusive interview. "It's a wake-up call. It means that there's been a system failure, and so we have to put everything in place to try and get that elimination status back."
Despite Quebec reporting only 36 measles cases this year compared to 2,393 in Ontario and 1,946 in Alberta, Quach-Thanh emphasized that the province cannot afford to become complacent. Canada has reported 5,162 measles cases nationwide as of November 1 this year.
Quebec's Successful Prevention Strategy
Quebec has been relatively successful in containing measles outbreaks, with its last significant transmission occurring nearly eight months ago. The province attributes this success to several key factors:
- A unique program where new parents meet with vaccination counselors who provide non-judgmental information and resources
- Overall measles vaccination coverage of approximately 90% across the province
- Rapid public health response to identify cases and contacts, followed by immediate vaccination
Regional vaccination rates vary significantly, however, with Abitibi-Témiscamingue reaching 94% coverage while Montreal area rates dip to around 85%.
Dr. Karl Weiss, chief of infectious diseases at the Jewish General Hospital, explained the severity of the situation: "One case of measles can lead to 10 secondary cases. So it's a lot more contagious than the flu." He noted that outbreaks in Alberta and Ontario have been particularly severe in Mennonite communities with large households and low vaccination rates.
Quach-Thanh, who succeeded Dr. Luc Boileau as Quebec's public health director in September, warned that rising vaccine hesitancy across Canada over the past decade, fueled by anti-vaccine misinformation, has created the conditions for this public health setback.
