Since 1985 Rotary has led the battle against polio, and kept the pressure on as worldwide cases plummeted from 350,000 per year to several hundred.

When India went off the list of endemic countries in 2012, we took one more step toward eradicating a human disease from the earth for only the second time in history. Now, Rotary and its partners are This Close to making that dream a reality.

Polio, or poliomyelitis, is a paralyzing and potentially deadly infectious disease that most commonly affects children under the age of 5. The virus spreads from person to person, typically through contaminated water. It can then attack the nervous system.

Polio mainly affects children under the age of 5. There is no cure for Polio, but it is preventable with a vaccine. Only 3 Countries remain Endemic on planet Earth. Rotary and its partners have reduced cases by 99.9% since 1988. Until we end Polio forever, every child is at risk!

Here are the TOP 5 Reasons
to Eradicate POLIO from our Planet

• 1 •    To improve lives
16 million people are walking today who would have otherwise been paralyzed.

• 2 •    To invest in the future
If polio isn’t eradicated, within 10 years, as many as 200,000 children could be paralyzed by it each year. A polio-free world will be a safer world for children everywhere.

• 3 •    To improve child health
Polio surveillance networks and vaccination campaigns also monitor children for other health problems like vitamin deficiency and measles, so they can be addressed sooner.

• 4 •    To save money
A polio-free world will save the global economy $40-$50 billion in health costs within the next 20 years.

• 5 •    To make history
Polio eradication would be one of history’s greatest public health achievements, with polio following smallpox to become only the second human disease eliminated from the world.