Measles resurgence and cost of policy failures

Bangladesh is encountering a surge in the incidence of measles. Over 35,000 people, mostly children under five, have been infected by the virus this year and more than 200 deaths have been reported. The saddest part about the current crisis is that it could have been easily avoided had we taken necessary measures in time.
The first infections were identified in January in a Rohingya refugee camp in Cox's Bazar. In no time, did the disease spread throughout the country. According to the World Health Organization (WHO) and local health authorities, disease has spread in all eight divisions.
Given the level of past success in measles elimination, the reversal of this situation has raised some critical concerns regarding the preparedness of the country and the policy decisions. The two main areas of failure at the centre of the problem are a lack of vaccinations and poor health infrastructure for treating child patients. Measles is no stranger to this country; it can be prevented by vaccines. MR (measles-rubella) vaccines have been used in Bangladesh for a long time. However, the vaccine stockout between 2024 and 2025 became a cause for the immunity gap. The lack of large-scale vaccination campaigns, which were last held in 2020, also contributed to the problem.
Vaccination programmes play a key role in preventing disease spread. Any problems with the campaigns may lead to unfortunate results. In this particular case, the interruption of vaccine procurement was one of such problems. According to media reports, the interim government led by Dr Muhammad Yunus attempted to shift vaccine procurement from a donor-supported sector programme to a revenue-funded model and the attempt led to a pause in vaccine procurement. Public health experts say the transition was poorly planned and hastily executed.
According to them, a proper planning and appropriate infrastructure for such a transition was needed in order to maintain a continuous flow of vaccines. The process initiated hastily caused disruptions forcing the government to return to the former method.
Another major concern is the status of healthcare facilities and, in particular, a lack of ICUs for young patients. Measles, while generally easy to handle, can lead to severe consequences in case of complications. In such situations, specialised treatment and ventilation services are needed. Unfortunately, most of the hospitals in Bangladesh lack such ICUs and this caused unnecessary deaths.
This double failure, in prevention and treatment, has transformed an easy public health problem into a major catastrophe on a national level. It has exposed the vulnerability of the entire health care sector.
This problem becomes even more acute due to the issues related to the leadership and expertise involved in the process. The involvement of people who have no adequate experience in public health in decision-making processes has caused some skepticism among specialists. Working with a sensitive affair like healthcare demands not only good management capabilities but also an understanding of epidemiology, distribution logistics and service provision. Without the necessary competence, serious problems are likely to emerge.
Bangladesh aspires to become the medical tourist center of the region. This objective sounds ridiculous as long as there are basic health care needs left unfulfilled. Immunising children, providing them with necessary medical care, and preventing the spread of diseases make a difference between life and death.
Corruption and inefficiencies add another dimension to the picture. Billions of dollars are spent on healthcare each year, yet the outcome is unsatisfactory. Issues like leakages, poor management and corruption reduce the effectiveness of the investment. Under such circumstances, even the best policy in place will not necessarily yield favourable outcomes.
The emotional toll of such failures cannot be quantified. There is always a human being behind each figure - one whose life ended prematurely, whose family had to suffer. These are not merely statistics; rather, they speak volumes for our inability.
We had seen before that Bangladesh can efficiently handle its health problems. But the current measles epidemic shows us how easily all our progress can be undone if our attention slips.
Our children are the ones who are suffering because of the failure of the policymakers. We owe them a better service. That's the issue at hand: Will we learn from this and avoid the next tragedy?

rahmansrdk@gmail.com