Polio Causes Global Health Emergency

mdsolar (1045926) sends this news from Bloomberg: "The spread of polio to countries previously considered free of the crippling disease is a global health emergency, the World Health Organization said, as the virus once driven to the brink of extinction mounts a comeback. Pakistan, Cameroon and Syria pose the greatest risk of exporting the virus to other countries, and should ensure that residents have been vaccinated before they travel, the Geneva-based WHO said in a statement today after a meeting of its emergency committee. It's only the second time the United Nations agency has declared a public health emergency of international concern, after the 2009 influenza pandemic. Polio has resurged as military conflicts from Sudan to Pakistan disrupt vaccination campaigns, giving the virus a toehold. The number of cases reached a record low of 223 globally in 2012 and jumped to 417 last year, according to the WHO. There have been 74 cases this year, including 59 in Pakistan, during what is usually polio's 'low season,' the WHO said. "

Comments

But, but, but⦠autism!!1!11!

[the_humeister]

Fuck you Jenny McCarthy and your anti-vax followers.

antivaxxers, kill, mame, burn

[Anonymous Coward]

those bastards are persistent and need to be eradicated, the bull shit they come up with to avoid vaccinating their kids is epic. They are starting to knowledge that autism is not caused by vaccines but they have come up with other bull. The newest one seems to be that vaccines cause SIDS, they wont produce any info on this and I have googled away and the only thing I find is reference to a settlement given by a vaccine company in a case of lupus in a child (they state this is proof the vaccine caused sids (hep b vax). You will never convince them. Another anecdote from my practice, I had a mom who got a settlement for her childs seizures years ago from a vaccine company. No one had worked up the seizures at the time and a settlement got awarded, something was definitely wrong, after extensive workup half her brain was congenitally absent. Take your bullshit with a grain of salt, they only way things will get better is if we actively promote vaccines and go out of our way to debunk this crap!

Any slap on the wrist for the CIA?

[ChilyWily]

It did not help that the CIA had a DNA collection, excuse me, "Intelligence gathering" operative working as a Doctor in one of the countries where the problem is the worst. Now health workers are getting assaulted and the poor who could get vaccinated, are without.

Re:Any slap on the wrist for the CIA?

[mirix]

Yep, this has to be one of the dumber plans the CIA has come up with. We were getting pretty close to entirely wiping out a second disease (after smallpox), and they had to go and screw it up to 'find terrists' or some such.

Surely polio has killed and maimed more people than terrorists could dream of.

Re:Any slap on the wrist for the CIA?

[Em Adespoton]

What didn't happen was some asshat's desire to demonstrate his knowledge of "inside knowledge" outweighed the oath he or she took to keep their mouth(s) shut.

It wasn't the method that was used to gather the intelligence that caused the problem, it was the disclosure of that method.

Right... just like it isn't your fault if you lose business because you're selling clothes that don't actually exist -- it's the fault of the intern who broke his contract to tell people that they weren't wearing any clkothes.

Shoot the messenger much?

I'm sorry, but I'll take asshat with integrity over government operation that compromises global health integrity any day.

After all, what's the problem if there's nothing to hide?

Also: Doctors also take an oath. This one broke his oath before any other alleged oathbreaking took place (I pledge to uphold the Constitution trumps gag orders/NDAs, the Hippocratic oath trumps both).

Re:Any slap on the wrist for the CIA?

[ChilyWily]

Sure... but when you have an enemy that calls innocent people dying as "collateral damage" and when they show no restraint with drone attacks and midnight raids, it is quite fearful for the local population to be very afraid of getting vaccinated because are you getting a real Doctor/Health care worker or are you getting into a CIA database where one day you will be killed? It doesn't help that one the other side you have the Taliban who now target *all* health care workers as working for the enemy... to the detriment of the poor people.

The CIA has the big brains, the big budget and they may have gotten the 1 person they wanted, but the misery they brought to many people, many children at that, does not justify the means. They did much evil in that case and it will cause hurt to many.

Is even a slap on the wrist not warranted for the CIA?
I don't even want to start with the other things the US Government has done in the "homeland" such as the Tuskegee Syphilis Experiments on African-Americans.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/...

Re:Any slap on the wrist for the CIA?

[sjames]

If only. The CIA took the Pakistani equivalent of the tinfoil hat brigade and elevated them by proving their point nearly to the letter.

Thanks to them, any denial now is at best a half truth and will be seen through. No assurances will be enough to erase suspicion now.

Re:Any slap on the wrist for the CIA?

[GameboyRMH]

Exactly. This is why it's a war crime to disguise combat troops or spies as medics. The GP's mindset is like the NSA's, that no action is too horrific as long a you don't get caught, potential consequences be damned.

Re:10% * 417 = ???

[Poingggg]

Seriously, what the hell? 417 cases of polio last year reported. This has to be on par with the number of motorcycle deaths due to flying mammals.

The problem is that it's infectuous. One person can infect several others, who infect more. Ever heard of exponential growth? If not, Google it.

CIA operatives should be flogged...

[Firethorn]

Every time I read about that I want to flog the CIA operatives that thought that up.

I mean, couldn't they have given out the REAL vaccine while they were at it? Or better yet, followed the rules of war and NOT imitated medical personnel?

Re:CIA operatives should be flogged...

[Sabriel]

Er, actually? Yes, the CIA deciding to flout the rules is indeed the CIA's fault.

Otherwise, what's the point of fighting the Taliban, if not to protect the innocent and uphold the rule of law?

Re:CIA operatives should be flogged...

[Firethorn]

Worse, it's important to remember that the Taliban isn't some organization that is evil 'just for the lulz'. It's a bad organization overall, yes, but one way to fight it is to rise above it's level and avoid giving them recruits because we do something stupid.

Bing - If the people see healthcare workers as purely helpful people, then they won't want the Taliban attacking them, they'll resist them being attacked, etc...

It's just like the prohibition on using holy sites as military points - doing so not only removes the protection from attack the site enjoys, but reduces the protection all the other sites enjoy. If we can keep our medical personnel from being seen as suspect, they're much better able to access these areas.

If we 'take the high road', then it pushes the Taliban(who are not Al Qaeda) to toe the line better. If both sides are toeing the line, it makes peace easier.