Russia tightens border security due to measles outbreak in Europe
Italy, Romania, Ukraine and Germany are seeing the most complicated situation
MOSCOW, January 15. /TASS/. Russia’s consumer rights watchdog Rospotrebnadzor warns about the ongoing measles epidemic in Europe and Ukraine and is tightening sanitary control along the Russian borders, the organization reported at its website on Monday.
"Rospotrebnadzor has tightened quarantine control in checkpoints through the state border of the Russian Federation and draws citizens’ attention to take the above-mentioned information into consideration when planning trips," the report says.
Italy, Romania, Ukraine and Germany are seeing the most complicated situation, the consumer rights watchdog warned citing the European regional office of the World Health Organization. In 11 months of 2017, 3,382 measles cases were registered in Ukraine. Most incidents occurred in the Ivano-Frankovsk (1,049), Odessa (931) and Zakarpatye Regions (416). Five lethal cases were reported in the Odessa Region.
"The Ukrainian Health Ministry believes that the main reason for the ongoing outbreak is low coverage of planned immunization against measles among children that was less than half of the needed quantity in 2016. In 2015, the WHO European regional office included Ukraine in the ten countries with the lowest immunization regarding children’s infections, such as measles, diphtheria and pertussis," Rospotrebnadzor explained.