Children in Shanghai whose families migrated from rural areas have lower rates of measles vaccination

Children in Shanghai, China whose families migrated from rural areas — now roughly 40% of the city’s total population — are half as likely as “local” children to receive the first dose of measles vaccine by 9 months of age and 42% less likely to receive the second measles dose by 24 months. The lower rates of timely first dose measles vaccination among rural migrants vs. local children — 78% vs. 89% – – are a key obstacle to measles elimination in China. This indicates a need to specifically target non-local children for vaccination, especially those living in primarily migrant communities.