It didn’t have to be this way.
That’s how Alberta doctors are characterizing Canada losing its measles elimination status, more than 25 years after the most infectious disease in the world was eradicated in our country.
“This is pretty disappointing and very much frustrating,” said Dr. Craig Jenne, an infectious disease expert at the University of Calgary.
Declared eliminated in Canada in 1998, measles has made a comeback, spreading rapidly in recent months due to declining vaccination rates.
Alberta’s outbreaks have sickened nearly 2,000 people — almost all unvaccinated — since March and killed an infant who contracted the disease in the womb and died after being born.
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The medical community saw the loss of the status coming for months now, Jenne said, after how quickly and widespread the measles outbreaks in Canada became in the past year.
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“We realized it’d be very difficult to stop that transmission before the one-year mark and this really represents a significant step backwards,” Jenne said.
The Alberta Medical Association said it’s disappointed and it didn’t have to be this way.
“This is the result of persistent misinformation and disinformation that continue to undermine public confidence in vaccines. Too many people are being targeted with false claims, leading to vaccine hesitancy and dangerously low immunization rates,” the association representing Alberta doctors said.
“This event also reinforces the critical need for strong, proactive public health leadership in this province.”
The declaration comes as the Alberta government has moved from daily to weekly measles number updates, as of Nov. 7.
Since March, 1,956 cases of measles have been reported in Alberta, with the majority of the cases occurring in the southern (998) and northern (738) Alberta Health Services zones.
It got so bad in the south and north that AHS issued standing exposure advisories — the idea being people in certain communities should assume they are at risk of catching the most contagious disease in the world at any time.
The data, as of Nov. 7, shows 88 per cent of Albertans with lab-confirmed measles were not immunized — that’s 1,740 people. A further 56 people had one dose on record, and 78 people had two doses or more.
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The majority of those who have fallen ill are children and teenagers — Albertans under the age of 18 make up 1,426 of the cases.
Earlier this year, Alberta surpassed all of the United States in confirmed cases.
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The Alberta government said the province has seen a sharp drop in measles cases, down more than 90 per cent, from the peak back in July when 147 were reported in a single week.
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The province said public health officials implemented targeted vaccination campaigns, expanded clinic hours, and launched provincewide outreach to increase uptake and limit spread.
The Alberta Ministry of Primary and Preventative Health Services said more than 137,000 measles vaccines have been administered since March — a 50 per cent increase compared to the same period last year.
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It added uptake in the south and north zones, where vaccination rates have historically been lower, rose by 83 per cent and 73 per cent, respectively.
Targeted outreach and expanded eligibility for early childhood doses have also driven a 400 per cent increase in early-dose uptake compared to last year.
Jenne said that is good, but not enough.
“When we look at the overall vaccine rates and the fact that, yes, new doses were administered this summer and we did see a small uptick — but nowhere near the levels that are required to achieve herd immunity really suggests that we could be doing a better job.”
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There are segments of the population who can’t be vaccinated, like infants and organ transplant recipients, and people who are immunocompromised and more susceptible to getting sick.
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“We’ve relied on herd immunity to keep these people safe in our communities and unfortunately that safety is eroding over the last several years,” Jenne said.
The measles elimination status is granted and revoked by the Pan American Health Organization, the World Health Organization’s office for countries in North and South America.
It said Monday Canada could no longer consider itself measles-free after confirming ongoing transmission of the same strain of measles for more than one year.
Daniel Salas, PAHO’s executive manager, Special Program for Comprehensive Immunization, said Canada will need to focus on the tight-knit communities of unvaccinated people where measles has primarily spread.
“If we look in some regions of Alberta, we have seen vaccine rates as low as 40 per cent,” Jenne said. “For measles, for true herd immunity, we need it closer to 95 per cent.
“It’s a clear illustration that there’s an awful lot of heavy lifting to do in the next several months to years to get us back to where we were.”
When immunization rates fall below the threshold needed for community protection, the AMS said measles is often the first to return, but it won’t be the last. Uptake of other routine childhood vaccines is also declining.
“Measles is really just the poster child,” Jenne said. “A number of infectious diseases that we fought hard to get rid of years ago are unfortunately resurging again,” he said, noting hundreds of whooping cough cases have been reported over the past year.
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Canada loses measles elimination status after outbreaks
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Adhering to the standard childhood vaccine schedule largely eliminated these diseases in Canada until recent years, when rates began to decline.
Measles, known for its characteristic red rash, is one of the most contagious viruses on the planet, with an R number of 12 to 18 — meaning one infected person can spread it to up to 18 others in an unvaccinated population.
To put that in perspective, COVID-19’s original strain had an R number of about two to three, and even highly-transmissible variants like Omicron rarely exceeded 10.
Complications of measles can include ear infections, pneumonia, inflammation of the brain, premature delivery, and rarely, death.
The highly contagious virus doesn’t just cause a rash and fever — it can also wipe out the immune system’s memory, leaving survivors vulnerable to infections they’ve fought off before, like the flu, a cold, or even diseases they’ve been vaccinated against.
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Health Canada warns that measles can lead to serious immune suppression, known as immune amnesia. This can increase the risk of other illnesses and even raise the chances of death for months or even years after the infection, the health agency states on its website.
People who are pregnant or have weakened immune systems and babies under the age of one are at greatest risk.
PAHO said almost 12,600 measles cases have been reported across 10 countries in the region with Canada, Mexico and the United States accounting for approximately 95 per cent of them.
That represents a 30-fold increase compared to 2024.
Canada’s outbreak began in New Brunswick in October 2024 and spread to more than 5,000 people in Canada. The Alberta government said its cases “have resulted from more than a dozen separate introductions from outside the province.”
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Health Matters: Canada loses measles elimination status
To get its elimination status back, Canada will need to stamp out the transmission of the current strain for at least 12 months, the Public Health Agency of Canada said Monday.
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Jenne said it can be done.
“Prior to 1970, it was assumed all Canadians would be exposed and infected by measles, and over the next 20 years or so through the introduction of vaccines, we were able to eliminate it,” he said.
“We don’t have as far to go this time. We have had a vaccine in place now for decades. For many places in Canada, it’s a matter of just topping up those numbers.
“We can get there, but it will take some work.”
If symptoms of measles do develop, individuals are advised to stay home and call Health Link at 811 before visiting any health care facility or provider, including a family doctor’s office or pharmacy.
The measles vaccine is highly effective at preventing infection and complications, and is free to get in Alberta.
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Canada loses measles elimination status
— with files from The Canadian Press
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