Protecting Vaccine Programs in the Era of COVID-19

The COVID-19 pandemic has the potential to have significant effects on routine immunization programs due to the burden on the health system, physical distancing requirements and reluctance by people to seek vaccination. Previous outbreaks such as Ebola have resulted in lowered coverage of routine vaccines, leading to outbreaks of preventable disease like measles. What do we know about how countries are responding so far to protect their vaccine programs? What principles has WHO established to guide countries on routine immunization during the pandemic and as coronavirus infections subside?