Nearly 270 cases of measles have been registered in Austria since the beginning of this year. The medical association now warns that the disease can be eradicated if the population is vaccinated. The chamber also requires that PCR tests and titer determinations be reimbursed by health insurance.
The triple vaccination against measles, mumps and rubella – usually given in the first year of life – is apparently increasingly being rejected in Austria because the measles have returned. Now the Austrian Medical Association is also getting involved and calling for measles vaccinations given the increasing number of cases.
“Vaccinations can prevent many serious diseases and save a lot of suffering,” demanded Edgar Wutscher, chairman of the Federal Curia for General Practitioners. The chamber also wants PCR tests and titer determinations as a health insurance benefit. Nearly 270 cases of measles were recorded this year. Last year, Austria was already the leader in Europe in terms of the number of reported cases.
Free vaccination offer
The measles vaccination (MMR) is currently offered free of charge without age restrictions; From the age of nine months, the vaccination plan recommends two MMR vaccinations. The goal is to “completely eradicate measles, which is possible with this vaccination – if the population is also vaccinated,” said Rudolf Schmitzberger, head of the medical association’s vaccination department.
In particular, people born between the late 1960s and the mid-1970s would not have sufficient vaccination protection at that time due to the vaccine.
If measles is suspected, practices should be contacted in advance by telephone or telemedicine to prevent infections there, said the Vice-President of the Federal Curia of Resident Doctors, Naghme Kamaleyan-Schmied.
The Medical Association also advocates for PCR tests to be covered by health insurance. These can make the diagnosis as quickly as possible and prevent infections. In many cases, the Austrian Health Insurance Fund (ÖGK) does not cover the costs, emphasizes Dietmar Bayer, Vice-President of the Federal Curia of Resident Doctors. Kamaleyan-Schmied also criticized the fact that titer determinations, which provide clarity about vaccination status, are not a health insurance benefit.
Source: Krone
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