This year, European Immunization Week, marked between 23 and 29 April, reminds us about the importance of timely routine vaccination and why we need to catch up on any missed or postponed vaccines and booster doses.

Several routine vaccines are available for all age groups – young children, teenagers, adults and elderly – to protect us from dangerous diseases like measles, rubella, hepatitis or meningitis, just to name a few. The disruptions caused by COVID-19 in healthcare and in our personal lives have led to serious delays in getting routine vaccines, causing significant consequences in our communities across the European Union (EU).

Let’s take the example of measles. Two decades ago this virus was a major killer of children. Measles is six times more infectious than influenza and one in five people may develop severe disease or complications. Between 2000 and 2018, deaths from measles declined by three quarters (73%) worldwide, with vaccines preventing an estimated 23.2…