Bangladesh measles outbreak claims 6 more lives, toll reaches 873
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Dhaka: Six children died with measles-like symptoms in Bangladesh in the 24 hours up to 8 a.m. local time on Sunday, taking the total number of confirmed and suspected measles-related deaths in the country in 2026 to 873, local media reported.
According to a statement issued by the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS), all six latest deaths were suspected measles fatalities. The number of laboratory-confirmed measles deaths remained at 98, while suspected measles-related fatalities rose to 775, United News of Bangladesh (UNB) reported.
During the 24-hour period, Bangladesh recorded 988 new suspected measles cases, taking the nationwide total to 136,320. Another 75 laboratory-confirmed cases were reported, raising the cumulative number of confirmed infections to 17,115.
As the country continues to witness a sharp rise in measles cases, a leading international advocacy group has described the 2026 outbreak as one of Bangladesh's worst public health crises in recent history, stressing that the disease is preventable through vaccination.
In its latest report, titled 'Preventable Tragedy: Bangladesh's 2026 Measles Outbreak', Canada-based Global Centre for Democratic Governance (GCDG) said that while the outbreak may have appeared sudden to the public, it was not unexpected from an "epidemiological perspective".
The report attributed the crisis to a combination of disruptions to vaccine supplies and health programmes in 2024-2025 during the former interim government led by Muhammad Yunus, missed routine vaccinations, cancellation of scheduled supplementary immunisation programmes, administrative delays in vaccine procurement and a failure to promptly identify at-risk populations.
According to the GCDG, Bangladesh had long procured WHO-approved vaccines through UNICEF's international supply chain. However, the interim government replaced the system with an open tender procurement process.
Citing UNICEF, the report said the agency repeatedly warned the interim government about a potential vaccine shortage through five to six formal letters and around 10 meetings held between 2024 and 2026.
Referring to Expanded Programme on Immunisation (EPI) data reported by Bangladeshi daily Samakal, the GCDG said measles vaccination coverage fell to 56.2 per cent in 2025, the lowest level recorded between 2017 and 2025.
The organisation said the WHO later identified a nationwide stock-out of measles-rubella (MR) vaccines during 2024-2025 and a lack of regular vaccination as the main contributors to declining immunity among children and the subsequent 2026 outbreak.
"Overall, the nationwide spread of measles resulted from a combination of administrative and health-system failures, including the programmatic vacuum created under the interim government; disruptions in vaccine procurement, transportation, and supply; vaccine stock-outs and cancelled EPI sessions; declining MR1 and MR2 coverage; an increasing number of children missing scheduled vaccinations; the absence of supplementary immunisation programmes; and the current government's inadequate and inefficient medical response," the GCDG said.
The organisation also alleged that the current Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) government failed to respond swiftly to "known and measurable risks" after taking power earlier this year.
Criticising the lack of transparency, the GCDG described "information opacity" as a distinct and serious failure of the current government's response to the measles outbreak.
With IANS inputs