A new study has revealed a groundbreaking revelation that there is no link between autism and the MMR vaccine.

Samoa has adopted “Black Death” tactics reminiscent of London’s 14th century bubonic plague to fight its measles epidemic, as deaths almost triple in a week.

Samoa’s prime minister has ordered a shutdown of all businesses and decreed citizens “tie a red cloth or red flag in front of their houses and near the road to indicate that family members have not been vaccinated”.

The two-day shutdown, from 7am on Thursday, is to allow a “door-to-door mass vaccination campaign” after 60 measles deaths were reported, up from 24 just over a week ago.

And as PM Tuilaepa Sailele Malielegaoi announced the extreme measures to stop the spread of the infectious disease ravaging his country, he has come under fire.

High profile anti-vaxxer and rugby league WAG Taylor Winterstein has claimed on Instagram Samoa is “in violation of the Nuremberg Code” by enforcing mandatory immunisation.

The Nuremberg Code of ethics principles was introduced after World War II, after the trials of Nazi war criminals including doctors who experimented on Jewish prisoners.

Ms Winterstein has already compared Samoa’s vaccination campaign to Nazi Germany, using the hashtag #NaziSamoa.

Mr Malielegaoi declared a state of emergency over the measles epidemic last month, but the red flag edict signified the crisis has deepened.

“The red mark makes it easier for the teams to identify households for vaccinations,” a statement from his office read.

The majority of those who have died from measles in Samoa are infants and children under the age of five.

A further 18 babies are critically ill in hospitals, almost all on Samoa’s main island of Upola, and more than 150 new cases have been diagnosed in just the last 24 hours.

Of Samoa’s total population of 200,000, more than 4000 people have been infected, meaning one in 50.

Last week, the government moved to stop children from attending school and anyone under 17 years from going to public places like shopping centres.

Many residents have now stopped going to work.

Samoa’s Ministry of Health released figures saying two-thirds of its population were vaccinated, however the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) said it was much lower, between 28 and 40 per cent.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) western Pacific medical officer, Jose Hagan, said measles was “probably the most infectious disease we know of”.

“This is quite a severe disease and we just aren’t used to seeing it, so it comes as quite a surprise when we see how fatal it can be,” he told Radio New Zealand.

He said increased access to measles vaccines was estimated to have saved 21 million lives in the past 20 years.

‘But we are starting to have a slide back and there are outbreaks happening all over the world in all WHO regions and it’s leading to the virus being exported through international travel,’ he said.

Anti-vaxxers, like Ms Winterstein, wife of Samoan international and Penrith second rower, Frank Winterstein, have recommended instead treating measles with Vitamin A.

The WAG and mother-of-two, who runs $200-a-head workshops on the dangers of vaccinations, has 15,300 Instagram followers.

Ms Winterstein posted on her page @tays — ways — on Tuesday that “it is well understood that poor nutrition plays a major role in the overall health status of Samoans and that Vitamin A deficiency in particular contributes to poor health”.

Ms Winterstein said she stood for “informed consent” and had “never advised anyone not to vaccinate”.

candace.sutton@news.com.au