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White Coat Black Art

Measles is making a comeback. So how did we get here?

In a bonus podcast you can stream here, the New York Times science reporter Donald G. McNeil talks to Dr. Brian Goldman about the newly-declared public health emergency in New York City, prompted by the measles outbreak in an Ultra-Orthodox Jewish community. And he sheds light on the resurgence of the disease around the world.
CBC News ·
Donald G. McNeil Jr. is a New York Times science reporter who covers global health, plagues and pestilences. (New York Times )

This week, New York City declared a public health emergency amid a growing measles outbreak of close of 300 cases and climbing. The city is also ordering mandatory vaccinations in the areas affected. Around the world, measles, a disease many doctors thought was on the way out, is making a comeback. In a bonus podcast in advance of this week's show Dr. Brian Goldman speaks to New York Times science reporter Donald G. McNeil Jr. He reveals how misinformation helped measles take root in an Ultra-Orthodox Jewish community in Brooklyn and why global health officials are now scrambling to contain a disease that just two years ago, seemed to be disappearing. He also unpacks the role of anti-vaccine movements and the difficulty of achieving consistent herd immunity. You can hear more on this week's White Coat, Black Art, which also features an interview  with Ottawa cancer patient who, despite having up-to-date vaccinations, got measles on a trip to the United Kingdom.