National immunisation coverage has increased for the first time in five years, for almost all vaccinations. For children born in 2017, vaccination coverage against mumps, measles and rubella (MMR) increased by 0.7% to 93.6%.

Wednesday, 18 November is European Antibiotic Awareness Day. On this day, attention throughout Europe is requested for the responsible use of antibiotics in people and animals.

On 26 October 2015, heel prick screening started for all newborns on St Eustatius and Saba.

Without global agreement on the use of HFCs, their contribution to the greenhouse effect may increase sharply to 10 percent of that of CO2 by 2050. The current contribution is less than 1 percent.