Measles immunisation: profit and loss in a general practice.

A survey in one general practice of the occurrence of measles and of immunisation in patients who were born between 1963 and 1982 showed that immunisation not only brought some financial reward to the practice, but by preventing measles reduced the number of consultations related to measles by 40%. Although practice policy often entailed a home visit to immunise a patient, measles disease was three times more likely to require a visit. It is surprising that, considering the efficacy and safety of measles immunisation, in Britain measles has not become the rarity it now is in the United States.