MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Measles is “more terrible” than Covid-19, says Bolivian president

Arce meant that measles spreads faster and wider than Covid-19

Bolivian President Luis Arce Catacora insisted Wednesday that measles was a more severe threat than Covid-19, urging parents to vaccinate children under 5 against the highly contagious viral disease, of which 60 cases have been confirmed nationwide, prompting an emergency declaration.

Health authorities have adopted measures such as mass vaccination, with 500,000 doses available nationwide free of charge. In addition, schooling switched to online mode in 13 municipalities across Santa Cruz, La Paz, and Potosí, and an early winter break in Santa Cruz starting June 30. Arce emphasized proactive vaccination to prevent the outbreak from escalating into an epidemic.

“Our exhortation to parents, moms, dads, take your children to be vaccinated. This measles disease is much more terrible than Covid-19, you have to be very careful, sisters and brothers, it has much more serious consequences than Covid-19,” the president warned.

“We do not want it to get out of hand, we are acting in a timely manner for the benefit of the population, for the benefit of our children who are always in need, because health, for our Government, has been a priority,” he added.

In addition, the Santa Cruz Departmental Health Service (Sedes) announced that measles vaccination certificates would be required for children traveling elsewhere.

“We cannot let this measles disease start to grow in the country. That is why we want to solve the problems at the root. How do we attack these problems? With vaccines! With a whole deployment of the Health Ministry and the departmental headquarters to prevent us from falling into an epidemic,” he further explained.

Measles is a very contagious viral disease that mainly affects children and is transmitted by droplets from the nose, mouth, and pharynx of infected people. According to Health Minister María Renée Castro, a person infected with measles can infect up to 18 people, six times more than Covid-19, which in the first wave reached a contagion rate of between 1 and 3 people.