Spain was recognised as measles-free in 2016 after demonstrating more than three years without endemic transmission of the virus. However, in 2024 the WHO was unable to rule out the possibility of a chain of transmission lasting longer than 12 months, which led to the withdrawal of this status.

According to Dr Luciana Pons-Muzzo, lecturer and researcher in public health and epidemiology in the Department of Medicine, “when the WHO refers to a measles-free country, it does not mean that the disease has disappeared, but rather that there is no sustained transmission over time, and in this case it has not been possible to rule out a continuous chain of infections”. She adds, “The Covid-19 pandemic, armed conflicts, poverty and high levels of population mobility have seriously affected vaccination programmes in many countries, combined with the high transmissibility of the measles virus.”

Despite this context, the expert stresses that the situation should not be interpreted as a setback for Spain’s healthcare system, emphasising that the risk to the general population remains low thanks to high vaccination coverage. “The average uptake of the two-dose vaccine schedule remains close to 95%, which offers good collective protection, although it does not reach the threshold required for herd immunity,” she explains.

Pons-Muzzo notes that the loss of measles-free status should be understood as a call to strengthen public health strategies and reminds us that, “These measures allow for timely action and help prevent more serious scenarios”. From a public health perspective, she highlights vaccination as the most effective preventive tool and insists that, “It is essential to follow the childhood vaccination schedule and to review the vaccination status of adults and of anyone planning to travel to countries with active outbreaks”.