What do leprosy, polio, malaria, tuberculosis, and measles all have in common? Two things: They were mostly eradicated in the United States until recently, and they have recently been reintroduced and are flaring up in various locations in the US now — brought in (at least in part) by unscreened, unvaccinated, unidentified illegal immigrants.
Successful public health campaigns and medical advances have enabled the United States to conquer a range of disfiguring and damaging diseases. Polio, which paralyzed thousands of Americans annually, was wiped out by widespread vaccinations. In 1999 the nation’s last hospital for lepers closed its doors in Louisiana. A global campaign eradicated smallpox, while lethal tuberculosis, the “consumption” that stalked characters in decades of literature, seemed beaten by antibiotics. Measles outbreaks still occur from time to time, but they…
