The United States is starting to see a growing number of cases of a disease that was once eradicated 20 years ago.
As of this week, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports around 60 confirmed cases of the measles have been documented in 17 states so far this year. That's already more than the 58 cases reported nationwide for all of 2023. States include Arizona, California, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Louisiana, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New Jersey, New York City, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and Washington.
Notably, Texas is not on that list.
Still, health officials and the CDC are ramping up their alert to families to double-check whether their child is up to date on the highly effective vaccines that can protect against measles, which can be very dangerous for unvaccinated children.
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Measles was previously eradicated more than 20 years ago in the U.S. but childhood vaccination rates are falling, and cases have been rising over the past several years. Cases especially rise during busy travel months, as more unvaccinated individuals travel to areas of the world with a high number of cases and bring the disease back to the U.S.
“It's like a cycle where we're going to see pockets of susceptible people getting infected, but sadly, we're seeing that the vaccination rates have continued to decrease. So we're seeing more and more susceptible people getting infected,” said Dr. Carla Garcia Carreno, infectious disease specialist with Children’s Health Plano.
In February, there were several measles cases confirmed at an elementary school in South Florida, NBC Miami reported. Chicago alone has identified 12 cases of measles in the city, NBC Chicago reported.
The CDC also reports very large outbreaks in many parts of the world, including Europe and Western Asia, where measles numbers went from under 1,000 in 2022 to 30,000 in 2023.
Parents may not be aware that babies are recommended to get a temporary vaccine for measles before international travel as early as six months old. The traditional measles vaccine required for many daycares and school districts is usually administered at 12 months old and then again at an older age for the second dose.
"Parents should also have a conversation with the primary care provider or pediatrician – it is really important whether you have a family member that is particularly vulnerable because the immune system is not 100% or you have a baby that is too young to receive the vaccination. So all of those factors will need to wait in when you are planning your vacation,” said Dr. Carreno.
Globally, measles cases were up 79% in 2023 compared to the prior year, according to the World Health Organization. In a press conference on Feb. 20, WHO noted that by the end of 2024, more than half of countries would be at risk of a measles outbreak unless prevention measures are put in place.
“Measles is a highly contagious virus that can spread quickly through the general public if people are not vaccinated,” Dr. Sandra Kemmerly, infectious diseases specialist and system medical director for quality and patient safety at Ochsner Health in New Orleans, Louisiana, tells TODAY.com.
Health experts said the rise in measles cases can be attributed to missed vaccinations during the pandemic, which caused a wide gap in immunity. There is also a continued decline in measles vaccine rates both in the U.S. and worldwide.
"During COVID, there was a decrease in vaccination rates not only due to the lockdown, but also as people decreased their faith in vaccination. So once we reopened, the vaccination rates haven't reached prior to COVID rates,” said Dr. Carreno. "There is also this myth that vaccines against measles is linked to autism, but there are no medical studies that have proven that. There is no correlation with this. So I guess there's still a lot of parents that fear this."
According to NBC News, anti-vaccination sentiment is on the rise.
Last year, the CDC found school vaccination exemptions were the highest on record among kindergarteners, with measles vaccination rates lower than pre-pandemic levels at 93.1%.
Experts say this is below the 95% threshold needed for herd immunity for measles, where enough of a population has received two doses of the vaccine so that even if some get measles, outbreaks cannot occur.
According to the TODAY show on NBC News, two-thirds of U.S. states have not hit this mark.
MEASLES SYMPTOMS
Measles is extremely contagious. It is transmitted through the air, even further than the six-foot distance established for COVID-19 during the pandemic.
According to the CDC, measles symptoms include the following:
- high fever (may spike to more than 104°)
- cough
- runny nose
- red, watery eyes (conjunctivitis)
Two to three days after symptoms begin, tiny white spots may appear inside the mouth. Then three to five days after symptoms begin, a rash breaks out.
It usually begins as flat red spots that appear on the face at the hairline and spread downward to the neck, trunk, arms, legs, and feet.
Dr. Carreno said an infected person can spread the measles up to four days before those symptoms even develop.
