The rise and fall of nations: vaccines, vaccination, and shifting global leadership

For decades, the United States was the archetypal “vaccine nation” – a country that combined scientific innovation, regulatory strength, and broad uptake to drive vaccine‑preventable diseases to historic lows. Measles elimination in 2000 became a symbol of that success. Today, however, the picture looks very different: as measles resurges and the core childhood schedule is politically narrowed, new centers of gravity are emerging in Asia and Africa – and, increasingly, in China – that treat vaccination as critical infrastructure rather than a cultural battlefield. Vaccines and vaccination have always reflected power, priorities, and politics as much as pathogens. Which countries rise or fall in this space over the next decade will depend less on historic prestige and more on whether they invest in immunization systems and vaccine industries as strategic assets. The US: from measles elimination to measles warning Measles elimination in the United States – defined as interruption of endemic transmission...