Eliminating Measles Remains a ‘Distant Goal’ Despite 88 Percent Decline in Deaths: WHO

The WHO estimates 58.7 million deaths have been prevented globally between 2000 and 2024 by the global measles vaccination program.

A 1-year-old is held by his mother while he receives an MMR vaccine in Lubbock, Texas, on March 1, 2025. Jan Sonnenmair/Getty Images

There has been an 88 percent drop in the estimated number of measles deaths worldwide between 2000 and 2024, but eliminating the disease completely remains a “distant goal” amid a surging number of cases, the World Health Organization (WHO) said in a report released on Nov. 28.

The number of deaths fell from 777,000 at the beginning of the century to 95,000 last year, the WHO said. The 2024 figure is “among the lowest annual estimates.”