8 O'Clock Buzz

8 O'Clock Buzz


Keeping Measles at Bay

August 18, 2025

WORT 89.9FM Madison · Keeping Measles at Bay

Since U.S. Nobel Laureate John Enders first introduced a vaccine in 1963, the incidence of measles has dropped precipitously worldwide.  As recently as 1990, measles killed more than half a million people a year.  In 2020, the World Health Organization estimated 150,000 measles deaths, a decline the WHO attributes to vaccinations.  In the past few years, though, declining vaccination rates have led to measles outbreaks, with 32 so far in the United States in 2025, and 9 confirmed cases in Wisconsin.  Morgan Finke is the Communication Coordinator for Public Health Madison / Dane County.  She joined Monday Buzz host Brian Standing on August 18, 2025.

(Image of child with measles, CDC/NIP/Barbara Rice, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons)

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