I think that in this scenario the disease that we will have to worry about isn't polio or another disease we can vaccinate for (although I do worry about polio) but something like bird flu. If/when bird flu or something similar becomes transmissable between humans we're probably in for a massive and horrendous epidemic.
I don't think there is anything much we can do to protect ourselves against the next big epidmemic.
TBH there's no reason to assume that it will travel from less developed countries to richer countries - the jump could occur anywhere.
I think that herd protection isn't as effective as some people believe because despite herd immunity measles is coming back in a big way. There is a strong correlation between the falling rates of immunisation and the increase of measles.
TBH if someone thinks that the risks from measles are so low that they don't mind their children getting the illness I have no problem with that. I had childhood illnesses because my mother wasn't big on vaccinating for the 'minor' diseases like chicken pox. They were the worst weeks of my life (and not just because I missed carnival with c-pox) but I did survive. On the other hand if they don't want thier children to get the illnesses but think that they'll be safe because other people have vaccinated, that strikes me as a tad selfish. Why should other children have to go though vaccination to protect their children?
It's great to see statistics like that. The death toll from disease in poorer communities is just heartbreaking. It's so easy to be complacent here and dismiss diseases like measles as uncomfortable and annoying and only rarely fatal that we forget in poorer communities they kill so much more easily.






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