Surge in Measles Cases Serves as Alarm for Weakening Herd Immunity

The government is faced with a policy dilemma, and nothing is truly comfortable.

Deputy Speaker of the MPR RI, Lestari Moerdijat, has reminded that the surge in measles cases in several regions must serve as a serious alarm for society and the government to immediately strengthen the health system, starting from the family level.

The statement was delivered by Lestari at the Denpasar 12 Discussion Forum. She emphasised that measles is not a minor disease, but an infection that can be fatal.

“So far, there is still the perception of measles as an ordinary disease. In fact, this is a disease that can be fatal, and has even caused fatalities,” said Lestari at the Denpasar 12 Discussion Forum on Wednesday (8/4).

According to her, by the end of March, several deaths due to measles were recorded nationally, including cases affecting healthcare workers, such as a young doctor on duty.

Lestari assessed that the surge in measles cases since the beginning of the year should serve as a warning to increase awareness of healthy living while strengthening the health system from the smallest unit, namely the family.

“If from the family scale we can build a strong health system, then gradually a good national health system will be formed,” she said.

She also highlighted the decline in group immunity or herd immunity as one of the main causes of the increase in measles cases. Lestari questioned the drop in immunisation coverage, even though the measles-rubella vaccine has long been part of the basic immunisation programme for toddlers and children.

On the other hand, several regions have reported suspected measles cases that were subsequently declared as extraordinary events (KLB) in various districts and cities.

Therefore, Lestari stressed the importance of public understanding of measles, from causes, transmission methods, to early detection steps.

“The most important thing is how we can together strengthen the community system to understand and detect early, so that we can anticipate quickly,” she said.

From the death cases in Pamekasan alone, it can be seen that the case fatality rate (CFR) for measles in Indonesia far exceeds the global threshold.

The potential for an extraordinary measles event or KLB measles in Sumenep Regency, East Java, has received serious attention from health workers, including in Jakarta.

Measles is once again becoming a global health threat as cases increase dramatically in several countries.