Chile verified as first country in Americas to eliminate leprosy: WHO

Exam-focused facts from the 6 March 2026 current affairs briefing.

Key facts

Chile is the first country in the Americas and the second worldwide to be verified as having eliminated leprosy by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO).
The last locally acquired case of leprosy in Chile was detected in 1993, and no local transmission has been reported for more than 30 years.
Between 2012 and 2023, Chile reported 47 cases of leprosy, all of which were imported rather than locally transmitted.
WHO and PAHO have provided free multidrug therapy (MDT) to countries in the Americas, including Chile, since 1995.