NL vaccination rate up for first time in five years

The national vaccination coverage in the Netherlands increased for almost all vaccinations for the first time in five years, public health institute RIVM said on Friday. 

This year 93.6 percent of two year olds were vaccinated against measles, mumps and rubella, an increase of 0.7 percent compared to the year before. Vaccination coverage for HPV in girls increased by 7.5 percent to 53 percent. 

At the end of 2019, the maternal pertussis vaccination, which protects mothers and newborn children against whooping cough, was added to the National Vaccination Program. In April and May this year, the vaccination coverage for this shot was around 70 percent.

Due to the high vaccination rate in the Netherlands, there were few reports of people having diseases that are included in the National Vaccination Program, the RIVM said. There were no reports of diphtheria, tetanus, rubella and polio last year. The number of reports of meningococcal W disease decreased to 62, and the number of reports of hepatitis B remained stable at 1,205. There were more reports of whooping cough at 6,383, measles at 84, and mumps at 131 last year. 

Between March and June 2020, there were fewer cases of pneumoccocal disease, meningococcal disease and mumps. The health service attributes this to measures in place against the coroanvirus, like increased hygiene, social distancing and the closure of schools, which also reduced the spread of other diseases.