Declining measles vaccination rates

The Chief Medical Officer, Professor Anthony Lawler, contacted us today to share an important update about measles. Please read it below.

Dear colleagues

With ongoing measles outbreaks overseas, we have seen a recent increase in confirmed cases across Australia, most commonly in unvaccinated and under-vaccinated adults aged 20 to 49 years. It is important to remember that measles is a vaccine-preventable disease.

I am concerned by declining vaccination rates, which currently sit below the target of 95 per cent required for herd immunity. I urge you to remind your patients that vaccination is the best protection against measles.

Measles is a very serious and highly transmissible disease. In an unvaccinated or under-vaccinated population, a single contagious person can potentially infect up to 18 other people. Measles can cause complications in up to one in three unvaccinated people. Significant complications include brain swelling, pneumonia, pregnancy loss, and lasting disability such as deafness, seizures, and serious movement problems. A small number of people die from progressive brain inflammation many years after their initial infection.

People are also more likely to catch other illnesses such as influenza, chickenpox or whooping cough after recovery from measles, even if they only had mild illness. Loss of immune memory can cause people to become more ill, more often, from diseases they were previously immune to. This means people could require repeat immunisation.

Adults can also spread measles to babies and young children, who are more likely to suffer serious complications from measles.

I want to take this opportunity to emphasise the critical role of vaccination in preventing measles. Vaccination is safe and highly effective in protecting against infectious diseases. In Australia, two doses of measles vaccine offers 99 per cent protection against illness and serious complications.

The combination measles vaccine is recommended for:

• children aged 12 and 18 months
• adolescents and adults born since 1966 who have not received two doses of a measles-containing vaccine
• infants aged six months to less than 12 months who may be travelling overseas or to high-risk areas.

Vaccination is important for adults with higher risk of exposure, particularly:

• people travelling, or returning from, overseas
• healthcare workers
• childhood educators and carers
• people who work in long-term care and correctional facilities.

The measles vaccine is available for free for eligible children under the National Immunisation Program (NIP). Eligible people under 20 years of age and humanitarian entrants or refugees of any age can also get free NIP catch-up vaccinations. The measles vaccine can also be purchased privately by patients who are not eligible for a free vaccine under the NIP.

I urge you to speak with your patients about being vaccinated to protect themselves against measles. We know that a positive recommendation from a trusted health professional is an important factor in people deciding to accept vaccination. I strongly encourage you to check that your patients are up to date with their immunisations and provide any catch-up vaccinations that may be required.

I’d like to remind vaccination providers that, in addition to the National Immunisation Program funded measles vaccines, some states and territories also fund measles-containing vaccine for specific cohorts. Dependent on the state or territory, these cohorts may include:

• children aged six months to less than 12 months who are travelling to a country where measles is endemic or outbreaks are occurring, and
• adults born during or after 1966.

Providers are reminded to confirm whether your patient is eligible for a free vaccine under local arrangements during routine individual risk assessments. For specific information on individual State and Territory Vaccination Programs, please visit:

I encourage providers to assist patients in checking what vaccines have been received in the past 30 years. It is particularly important to check vaccination status before travelling to areas experiencing a measles outbreak. While this information may be available on a patient’s Australian Immunisation Register (AIR) record, historical vaccination data may be limited. This is because the AIR only records vaccines from 1996 onwards and mandatory reporting requirements came into effect in 2021. Individuals can check their Immunisation History Statement for any vaccinations they have received that have been reported to the AIR, by using their Medicare online account, through myGov or the Express Plus Medicare mobile app.

Additional clinical guidance on measles is available in the Australian Immunisation Handbook chapter on Measles. 

To help determine whether adults should receive a catch-up vaccine, the National Centre for Immunisation Research and Surveillance (NCIRS) has prepared a guide for immunisation providers.

Thank you for your assistance in preventing the spread of measles, and in safeguarding the health of our communities.

Yours sincerely

Professor Anthony Lawler
Chief Medical Officer