Philippines Declared Polio-Free Once Again After Vaccine Campaign

Polio re-emerged in Philippines in 2019, nearly two decades after its last cases were detected, sparking a nationwide effort to immunise millions of children.

The Philippines is once again polio-free, the World Health Organization said Friday, after a successful vaccination campaign that has raised hopes for COVID-19 inoculations in a country plagued by mistrust of jabs. Polio re-emerged in the country in 2019, nearly two decades after its last cases were detected, sparking a nationwide effort to immunise millions of children against the crippling disease. At least 17 people were infected, but health authorities said they have not detected the virus in a child or the environment in the past 16 months. "We are celebrating freedom from polio," said Rabindra Abeyasinghe, the WHO representative in the Philippines.