MEASLES cases in Spain nearly doubled in 2025 according to the Carlos III Health Institute.
It reported 397 registered cases compared to 217 in 2024, and just 11 the previous year.
The World Health Organization (WHO) eight years ago declared that Spain was free of the endemic circulation of the virus.
READ MORE:
- Measles alert continues in the Costa del Sol – including in these tourist hotspots
- Spain’s Andalucia on measles alert: Health outbreak ‘originating from Morocco’ hits the Costa del Sol
The recent increase is down to it being brought in from areas that have high numbers of measles cases.
In 2024, most instances were imported into Spain from Morocco or Romania, which have suffered serious epidemics.
People who suffered in the country were either unvaccinated or not previously contracted measles.
Vaccination against measles in Spain is said to be above 93%.
Noemi Lopez Perea, a researcher at the National Epidemiology Centre of the Carlos III Health Institute told the El Pais newspaper: “What is happening in Spain is a reflection of what is happening abroad.”
“Viruses do not understand borders and circulation outside our territory has increased a lot.”
“It is a great global concern and what we get are imported cases that generate outbreaks. The only way to stop it is to have high vaccination coverage,” warned Lopez Perea.
According to the Health Ministry, coverage with two doses of the MMR vaccine exceeded 93% in 2024 and, although the percentage is slightly lower than in 2023 (94%), Lopez Perea said the situation ‘is not considered worrying or alarming’.
Paediatrician, Fernando Moraga-Llop, told El Pais that though at a global level the situation is ‘worrying, and alarming at times’, there is no such concern in Spain.
“It is an alert situation that must be solved with two things: increased vaccination coverage and epidemiological surveillance,” he said.
Moraga-Llop warned there are parts of the country like the Balearics, the Canary Islands and Aragon where vaccination levels are below 90%.
“In Spain we are doing well, but we have lost excellence in some vaccines. We have to be vigilant.”
Click here to read more Health News from The Olive Press.
This is a major concern with ALL illegal immigrants entering a country. Initially, none of them can be checked for infectious diseases but once they are in some kind of housing, it is down to the health authorities to organize mandatory health checks., initially by taking blood tests. New viruses are emerging all the time, and many morph into something more complicated and dangerous. We no longer just have the “common cold.” Air traffic is also a major cause for concern, due to many airlines not changing their air filters in the airplane. This allows any germs to be spread throughout the entire plane load of travelers and aircrew. This was brought to the attention of medical professionals over 25 years ago when a conference was held in the U.K. what they saw was most definitely cause for concern, but I am unaware if anyone ever took this up with the authorities responsible.