Pathogens in sewage: State of New York declares a polio emergency

Status: 12.09.2022 5:05 p.m

Actually, polio is considered to be eradicated – in the US state of New York, however, the viruses have now increasingly been found in wastewater. Governor Hochul declared a state of emergency.

By Peter Mücke, ARD Studio New York

Polioviruses were recently detected in wastewater in several counties in New York State. An alarm signal, because the pathogens that cause polio are often spread via contaminated water. Also in July, a man in one of the affected communities contracted polio, the first case in the United States in nearly a decade.

The New York health authority fears that the virus could also spread in the metropolis. The governor of the state, Kathy Hochul, has therefore declared a disaster. Among other things, the network of providers who are allowed to administer polio vaccinations has been expanded to include emergency responders, midwives and pharmacists. The health authority urged all insufficiently or not vaccinated residents to be immunized. This is especially true for children.

Experts blame vaccination fatigue

Polio has been considered eradicated in the United States since the late 1970s. The experts attribute the fact that the infectious disease is now on the rise again to the lack of vaccination among the population.

In New York City, 14 percent of children between the ages of six months and five years are not fully vaccinated against polio. In the counties where viruses have been detected in the wastewater, the vaccination rate in the total population is sometimes only 40 percent.

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