Polio Update
In 2009, there were 1454 new cases of polio worldwide. The largest number, 685, were in India, followed by Nigeria with 383.
Two countries that are often in the U.S. news because of wars are also still battling polio. Pakistan had 76 cases last year and Afghanistan had 24 cases.
Rotary, International’s Stop Polio Now campaign continues to distribute vaccine to the world’s poorest citizens. When I watch news clips from Afghanistan, I realize what a challenge it is to get the vaccine, which must be refrigerated, to the people who need it. A generous grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation is helping in this effort.
Most people who contribute to or work for this cause talk about doing it to help the children. If you have read my memoir, Small Steps: The Year I Got Polio, you know that polio can cause pain, paralysis, and even death, so eradicating this disease WILL help thousands of children.
It will also help senior citizens, such as me. Children who never get polio will also never have post-polio syndrome, the problem that has had such a negative impact on my life.
I fervently hope that one year soon I will be able to report that there were no new cases of polio anywhere in the world that year.