The World Health Organization (WHO) reports that measles cases and deaths have increased around the world since 2016.The United Nations agency reports that the disease infected almost 870,000 last year, and killed more than 207,000.That is a 50 percent increase from 2016 levels.The WHO says the failure to vaccinate children is the main cause of the increase.The organization says an estimated 95 percent of the population must be fully vaccinated to prevent measles from spreading.But, vaccination coverage has been 70 percent to 85 percent around the world, the WHO reports.Reported cases of measles are lower this year than last. But the WHO says the coronavirus outbreak interfered with vaccination efforts.Natasha Crowcroft is the WHO's senior technical advisor for measles and rubella.She told VOA that different plans are needed to prevent new measles outbreaks in the time of COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus.
