WHO, UNICEF Declare End of Polio Outbreak in the Philippines

A baby gets an oral anti-polio vaccine during the launch of a campaign to end the resurgence of polio after health authorities confirmed a polio case in the country in Quezon city, the Philippines, on Sept. 20, 2019. Bullit Marquez/File/AP Photo

MANILA, Philippines—A polio outbreak in the Philippines has ended, according to the World Health Organization and the United Nations Children’s Fund, which praised government efforts to fight the disease despite the coronavirus pandemic.

The U.N. agencies said in a joint statement on Friday that the Philippine Department of Health concluded its response to the polio outbreak on June 3 after no cases were detected for 16 months following a massive immunization campaign and surveillance.