On Jun. 21, 2002, all 53 Member States in the World Health Organization (WHO) European Region were certified polio free by the Regional Commission for the Certification of Poliomyelitis Eradication (RCC).

Since that time vaccination against polio has continued to be a cornerstone of routine immunization services in every Member State, and national and regional surveillance systems and laboratories have ensured that no polio case could have been left undetected.

To be certified polio free the Region had to demonstrate: at least 3 years of zero cases of indigenous wild poliovirus; functional and quality surveillance for the disease; and capacity in each country to detect, report and respond to imported cases in a timely manner. To keep people in the entire Region protected from poliomyelitis and retain polio-free status each year, all of these factors must be sustained. In addition, type 2 polioviruses still stored in laboratories need to be kept safe or destroyed.