Polio outbreak in Ukraine is a state of emergency, UN says
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}A boy receives polio vaccine drops at a clinic in Kiev, Ukraine, October 21, 2015. REUTERS/Gleb Garanich (Copyright Reuters 2015)
The World Health Organization is urging Ukraine's health ministry to declare a state of emergency due to a polio outbreak, a move meant to prompt more action from the government in Kiev.
In September, Ukraine announced two polio cases - the first in Europe since 2010.
The U.N. health agency recommended that Ukraine declare a state of emergency and "respond to the polio outbreak as quickly and effectively as possible," Dorit Nitzan, head of the WHO's office in Ukraine, told journalists.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Half of Ukraine's children have not been vaccinated against polio.
Polio is a highly infectious, paralyzing disease on the brink of elimination. Aside from Ukraine, cases have only been reported in six other countries this year, with the majority in Pakistan and Afghanistan.