Since its founding in 1988, the efforts of the Global Polio Eradication Initiative have contributed to its eradication … [+]
Polioviruses are not technically on the ballot for the upcoming November 5 US election because viruses are not human and cannot run for political office. But voting in this election could still have a major impact on what happens with polioviruses. After all, the US government has played an important role in providing support the Global Polio Eradication Initiative since its launch in 1988. And the world has moved closer to eradicating the disease that caused so much misery and suffering worldwide, paralyzing hundreds of thousands of children every year in the early 20th century. What US political leaders choose to do over the next four years could mean the difference between eradicating polio, continuing to survive or even enjoying some kind of resurgence.
“I cannot emphasize enough the importance of the US,” he stressed Mike McGovernchair of the Rotary International PolioPlus Committee since October 2014. “The U.S. government provides approximately $240 million in funding, including funds going to the CDC. It funds positions around the world and in the field and helps provide vaccines. The full spectrum.” The GPEI is a public-private partnership led by national governments working with the World Health Organization, Rotary International, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the United Nations Children’s Fund, the Gates Foundation and Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance. As the name makes quite clear, the stated purpose of the GPEI is to “eradicate polio worldwide.”
Therefore, it was not surprising that the words “US elections” came up during one “Breakfast dialogue: a healthier future through fair immunization” on September 25. This was a side event to the 79th United Nations General Assembly, which included representatives from the major organizations that make up the GPEI. It was a discussion about what might happen next with the big ‘e’ word – meaning polio eradication efforts – that brought up the other ‘e’ word – meaning the US elections. Although there was excitement about the possible eradication of polio, the “e” word didn’t seem to generate much excitement in the room, likely because there is still so much uncertainty about what might happen to the U.S. government.
On the one hand, efforts to eradicate polio have historically received support from the two major political parties in the US at large. “No member of Congress at the subcommittee level has opposed polio funding,” McGovern recalled. “The latest continuing resolution has provided equal funding.” He went on to say, “Despite all the negativity we hear about the political process in Washington, the polio funding process has been good.” McGovern added: “The funding support dates back to the Clinton administration, and funding was maintained during the last Trump administration.”
The GPEI can also point to the progress made since its creation in 1988, after the World Health Assembly adopted a resolution to eradicate polio worldwide. The GPEI has coordinated mass vaccination campaigns, sanitation efforts, and healthcare infrastructure improvements to control and eliminate the virus in many countries.
In the 35-year history of the GPEI, the number of cases of wild poliovirus has increased from an estimated 350,000 cases in more than 125 endemic countries to just 12 reported cases in 2023, a decrease of more than 99%. In fact, two strains of wild poliovirus (type 2 and type 3) were considered eradicated in 1999 and 2020, respectively. This allowed eradication efforts to focus on the last remaining wild variant, type 1, which is now largely confined to two countries – Pakistan and Afghanistan – and the vaccine-derived variants of poliovirus that have emerged in several parts of the world. This has made many feel that the word ‘e’ is within reach.
Nepalese health workers pose for a photo before going door to door to administer polio vaccines … [+]
On the other hand, however, two political trends threaten to unravel the progress made if these trends were to manifest in US government decision-making after the upcoming elections. One is that the US is less involved and withdrawing from international partnerships in general. While such conversations have not necessarily focused on efforts to eradicate polio, it could promote the belief that what happens in other parts of the world will not affect the US. That’s obviously not the case, especially when it comes to something like polio or whatever. infectious disease by the way.
Peter L Salk, MD, who has had a long career in infectious disease research and control and is chairman of The Jonas Salk Legacy Foundationhighlighted how viruses do not respect political boundaries: “A disease anywhere in the world has the potential to spread elsewhere. The next pandemic is just a plane ride away.” Salk continued: “It is important to recognize the value and need to care for people around the world. We are all in this together as human beings and there should not be just arrows pointing at us.”
The second troubling political trend is the anti-science and anti-vaccination movements and political leaders who fuel these movements and amplify their messages. “Most US citizens support vaccination,” McGovern said. “You hear about the anti-vax people, but you don’t hear about the people who support vaccination.”
In this 1957 photo, Dr. poses. Jonas Salk (center), developer of the polio vaccine, on the deck of … [+]
Today, many people may be unaware of what things really looked like before polio vaccines were discovered and introduced in the 1950s and 1960s. As the son of Jonas Salk, MD, who developed one of the first successful polio vaccines, Peter Salk witnessed firsthand what happened when people were finally able to get vaccinated against polio: “The fear of polio was pervasive,” Salk recalls himself. “Large numbers of people have contributed to the polio vaccination effort. There was absolute jubilation when the vaccines arrived. It was a victory of the people.”
But now, in many ways, vaccines have become victims of their own success. For example, the mass polio vaccination helped eliminate polio from the US, so that 1979 was the last time a wild case of poliovirus was observed in the US, and in 1994 the US World Health Organization (WHO) region declared America polio-free. This has meant that fewer and fewer people in the US have seen in advance how bad polio can be and more and more people can take vaccination for granted.
“The guard has been let down,” Salk warned. “People are not that concerned about keeping vaccination rates high.” McGovern pointed to what happened in 2022 in Rockland County, New York, where immunization rates have fallen. There, an unvaccinated young adult was diagnosed with polio and Sabin-like polioviruses type 2 were found in the wastewater. McGovern also pointed out that this is not just a problem in the US: “Immunization rates in many countries are going down.”
With October 24 being World Polio Day and the US elections just 12 days away, it’s important to remember what happens in the US won’t necessarily stay in the US. Likewise, what happens in other countries with the polio virus will not necessarily stay in the US. those countries. “There needs to be a better understanding that we are all part of a larger community of humanity,” Salk said. “There needs to be a more comprehensive understanding and care for the community worldwide.”