Measles Outbreaks Trigger Vaccine Push in U.S. Virgin Islands

Health Commissioner Encarnacion stresses the urgency of boosting childhood vaccine rates amidst escalating measles cases in the region

As measles outbreaks continue to surge across the United States and the Caribbean, VI Health Commissioner Justa Encarnacion is calling on parents in the U.S. Virgin Islands to start or keep up with their children's vaccination schedules.

Ms. Encarnacion this week expressed her concerns about the notably low childhood vaccine rates in the territory, especially given the looming threat of measles. "We are very concerned about the low childhood vaccine rate in the Territory, especially with measles threatening the US," she stated. Currently, only 60 percent of USVI children are vaccinated, a statistic that is exacerbated by an increasing number of parents seeking vaccination exemptions.