WHO’s “World Health Assembly adopts historic Pandemic Agreement to make the world more equitable and safer from future pandemics”
- Agreement’s adoption follows three years of intensive negotiation launched due to gaps and inequities identified in national and global COVID-19 response.
- Agreement boosts global collaboration to ensure stronger, more equitable response to future pandemics.
- Next steps include negotiations on Pathogen Access and Benefits Sharing system.
Published: May 20, 2025.
MEASLES – MOROCCO
Since late 2023, Morocco has been experiencing a widespread measles outbreak. Cases have been recorded across all regions of the country, particularly among children and people who are unvaccinated. In response, the Ministry of Health and Social Protection (MOHSP), in collaboration with relevant sectors, activated the National Center for Public Health Emergency Operations, launched urgent catch-up vaccination campaigns, and strengthened surveillance, case management, and risk communication and community engagement efforts. Measles is a highly transmissible viral disease that can lead to severe complications and death. While Morocco has made significant progress toward measles elimination, the disease remains endemic in the country. The overall risk is assessed as moderate at the national level and moderate at the regional level, particularly given the risk of cross-border transmission in areas with low vaccination coverage.
Published: 13MAY25
https://lnkd.in/ddqnwU32 – WHO – DON
Chikungunya – La Réunion and Mayotte
Since August 2024, widespread transmission of chikungunya virus disease has been documented in La Réunion as well as increasing locally transmitted cases in Mayotte. Although chikungunya outbreaks and endemic transmission occur annually in several countries and territories around the world, the Indian Ocean islands have not experienced major outbreaks for nearly two decades. In La Réunion, over 47 500 cases and twelve associated deaths have been reported as of 4 May 2025, with sustained high transmission across the island. In Mayotte, the first locally transmitted cases since 2005–2006 have been detected, raising concern about similar large outbreaks. Public health response measures, including enhanced surveillance, vector control activities, and novel targeted vaccination efforts, have been implemented to contain the outbreaks, however further outbreak activity in the islands of the Indian Ocean can be expected.
Published: 12MAY25
https://lnkd.in/d3fYHG_E WHO-DON
MERS-CoV – SAUDI ARABIA
Between 1 March and 21 April 2025, the Ministry of Health (MoH) of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) reported nine cases of Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) infection. Two of these cases died. Among the nine cases, a cluster of seven cases were identified in Riyadh, including six health and care workers who acquired the infection from caring for a single infected patient. The cluster was identified through contact tracing and subsequent testing of all contacts, with four of the six health and care workers being asymptomatic and two showing only mild, nonspecific signs. The notification of these cases does not change the overall risk assessment, which remains moderate at both the global and regional levels. These cases show that the virus continues to pose a threat in countries where it is circulating in dromedary camels and spilling over into the human population. WHO recommends implementation of targeted infection prevention and control (IPC) measures to prevent the spread of health-care-associated infections of MERS-CoV and onward human transmission
Published: 12MAY25
https://lnkd.in/ddtkpFhc WHO- DON
“US surpasses 1,000 measles cases in 2025, second worst year since disease was declared eliminated”
Published: May 7, 2025.
https://www.cnn.com/2025/05/07/health/measles-cases-one-thousand-us
“Epidemiological Update Measles in the Americas Region – 2 May 2025”
In 2025, between epidemiological week (EW) 1 and EW 16, in the Americas Region, 2,325 measles cases have been confirmed, including four deaths, in Argentina (n= 22), Belize (n= 7), the Plurinational State of Bolivia (n= 1), Brazil (n= 5), Canada (n= 1,069), Mexico (n= 421 cases, including one death), and the United States of America (n= 800, including three deaths) . This total represents an 11-fold increase compared to the 205 measles cases reported in the same period of 2024.
Published: May 2, 2025.
https://www.paho.org/en/documents/epidemiological-update-measles-americas-region-2-may-2025
“Rise in Cases of Preventable Diseases in the Americas (Pertussis)”
Whooping Cough:
- United States: 8,485 cases have been reported in 2025—double the number from the previous year. Michigan recorded 497 cases, and Louisiana reported two infant deaths in the past six months.
- Mexico: As of April 2025, 809 cases of whooping cough and 48 deaths (all in infants under one year) have been confirmed. The government has implemented vaccination for pregnant women to protect newborns.
- Guatemala: Between January and March 2025, 14 suspected cases and 7 confirmed cases were reported, mainly in the departments of Sacatepéquez and Guatemala.
- Peru: 293 cases of whooping cough have been reported so far this year, with significant outbreaks in the Cusco and Loreto regions.
Published: May 2, 2025.
https://aldianews.com/en/wellness/investigation/surge-illnesses
“Number of suspected measles cases decreased by 4.3% compared to the previous week in Vietnam”
Since the beginning of 2025, the country has recorded 81,691 suspected measles cases in 63 provinces and cities. Compared to the time with the highest number of cases in the week, the number of cases recorded in the week has decreased by 30%.
Published: April 27, 2025.
https://www.vietnam.vn/en/so-ca-nghi-mac-soi-giam-4-3-so-voi-tuan-truoc-do
“Flying malaria vaccines reach isolated Nigerian communities”. So far, this initiative has helped to reach 20,000 people with the first dose of the malaria vaccine in the state
Published: April 22, 2025.
https://www.gavi.org/vaccineswork/flying-malaria-vaccines-reach-isolated-nigerian-communities
“Takeda to launch Dengue vaccine in India next year”
Takeda, in partnership with BioE, plans to launch the Qdenga dengue vaccine within a year—an important milestone for a country burdened with thousands of dengue cases.
Published: May 1, 2025.
“Meningococcal Vaccines Market 2025-2032: Public Immunization Programs Drive Global Growth”
Published: April 29, 2025.
https://www.openpr.com/news/3991553/meningococcal-vaccines-market-2025-2032-public-immunization
“Weekly Special Press Briefing on the mpox Outbreak and other Health Emergencies in Africa”
Published: May 12, 2025.
WHO: “Yellow Fever: Region of the Americas”
Published: May 16, 2025.
https://www.who.int/emergencies/disease-outbreak-news/item/2025-DON570
“May 19 deadline to send letter to Congress for Lyme and TBD programs”
Published: May 15, 2025.
https://www.lymedisease.org/may-19-deadline-congress/
“WHO Director-General’s keynote address at the Building a Healthier Asia event – 6 May 2025”
Published: May 6, 2025.
“BactiVac, the Bacterial Vaccines Network”
BactiVac, the Bacterial Vaccines Network, was established in August 2017 to address this gap. Its mission is to advance vaccine development against global bacterial infections in humans and animals, to reduce disease, death, and antimicrobial resistance, and thereby enhance economic development. BactiVac brings together academia, industry, policymakers and funders from high-income countries (HICs) and low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), in a network of 2060 members from 92 countries, including 51 % from LMICs and 15 % from industry. BactiVac supports vaccine development through Catalyst Project Awards and Catalyst Training Awards. This funding targets bottlenecks and capacity-building in vaccinology, particularly among LMIC early-career researchers.
Vaccine 2025; 57: 127210. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.vaccine.2025.127210
Published: May 31, 2025.
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0264410X25005079
“FDA gives full approval to Novavax COVID shot for high-risk groups”.
The vaccine is now approved for adults aged 65 and older, or for people ages 12 to 64 who have at least one health condition that puts them at higher risk of serious illness from COVID-19. Novavax’s shot is the only protein-based COVID vaccine available in the U.S. Until now, it had only been allowed for emergency use in people 12 and up.
Published: May 19, 2025.
https://medicalxpress.com/news/2025-05-fda-full-novavax-covid-shot.html
