LONDON, Jan 19, 2024 (BSS/AFP) - The UK's public health protection agency 
on Friday sounded a "national call to action" for more measles jabs for 
children because of falling vaccination rates and fears a current outbreak 
could spread.

Jenny Harries, head of the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), warned that 
measles was spreading among unvaccinated communities.

She acknowledged that some members of the Muslim community were wary of the 
vaccines because one on offer had a pork-based derivative.

But she said she wanted to let people know that an alternative was available 
and was "very effective".

People have "forgotten what measles is like", Harries told BBC radio, 
pointing out that it could even be fatal in rare cases.

The UK had previously achieved "measles elimination status", she said.

Now, however, the average number of children starting school having had both 
doses of the combined measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine stands at only 
85 percent.

Highlighting the central West Midlands region of England, she said an ongoing 
outbreak there had seen 216 laboratory-confirmed cases and 103 "likely" cases 
since October 1, 2023.

Of those, 80 percent were found in the city of Birmingham.

Vaccination rates across the country have been dropping, but there are 
particular concerns about some areas, including parts of London.

The lowest rates nationally were seen in the capital, with one area -- 
Hackney in the east -- having vaccinated only 56.3 percent of children, 
according to the latest health service figures.

Asked which communities were less likely to take up vaccinations, Harries 
said that "for the West Midlands, for those in Muslim communities, they will 
be not keen to take up one of the MMR vaccines that we offer, which has a 
pork-based derivative".

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), about 83 percent of the 
world's children received one dose of measles vaccine by their first birthday 
-- the lowest since 2008.

In 2021, there were an estimated 128,000 measles deaths worldwide, mostly 
among under-vaccinated or unvaccinated children under the age of five.