Measles Still Looms: Experts Urge Parents Not to Hesitate on Vaccinations

REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA – The measles situation in Indonesia at the start of 2026 shows a fairly encouraging trend. The Ministry of Health reports a decline in cases of up to 90 per cent in some regions. However, behind this achievement, cases of death and transmission clusters are still found in several areas.

Public health expert from Universitas Airlangga, Jayanti Dian Eka Sari, assesses that this situation is not yet fully safe. “The decline in cases is indeed good news, but it does not yet indicate that the problem is resolved. The condition is still in the control phase, not elimination,” she said in a written statement, quoted at the end of last weekend.

According to her, measles is currently not just an issue of infectious disease alone, but also reflects the capacity of the health system and public behaviour. From a health promotion perspective, the main challenge is no longer vaccine availability but behavioural factors.

“The main problem is hesitation towards vaccines, low risk perception, and access fatigue. That means the public must continue to adapt to accessing health services,” she said.

She assesses that the government’s health promotion programme has increased immunisation coverage in general. Although its effectiveness is not yet even across all regions and social groups.

“The programme is already effective on a macro level, but not precise in reaching hesitant groups, those with difficult access, or those exposed to hoaxes. Immunisation is not failing due to lack of information, but because the message is not convincing enough,” said Jayanti.

She also emphasised that measles is a multifactorial phenomenon. Vaccine availability does not automatically guarantee public protection if there are still gaps in immunisation coverage. Because as long as there are children who are not fully immunised, transmission still has gaps.