A measles outbreak in Ohio reached 68 cases, giving the state
the dubious distinction of having the most cases reported since 1996, health
officials say.
The
Ohio outbreak is part of a larger, more worrisome picture: As of Friday, the
federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention had logged 187 cases
nationwide in 2014, closing in on last year’s total of 189. The CDC warned
several weeks ago that the country could end up having the worst year for
measles since home-grown outbreaks were eradicated in 2000.
The
last time a state had more measles cases than Ohio has now was 1996, when Utah
had more than 100, according to the CDC.
The Ohio outbreak, like ongoing outbreaks in California and
elsewhere, has been linked to unvaccinated travelers bringing the measles virus
back from countries where the disease remains common. In Ohio, all of the cases
have been among the Amish, health officials say.
The
outbreak began after Amish missionaries returned from the Philippines. The
Philippines is experiencing a large, ongoing measles outbreak with more than
26,000 cases reported, according to the CDC.
The
California outbreak, also linked to the Philippines, had reached 59 cases as of
Friday, according to the California Department of Public Health.
The
center of the Ohio outbreak is Knox County, where 40 cases have been reported.
Thousands of Amish in Knox and surrounding areas have lined up to be
vaccinated, says Pam Palm, spokeswoman for the county health department. Though
the Amish traditionally have low vaccination rates, “they have been very
receptive to coming in and getting immunized” to stem the outbreak, Palm says.
Ohio
also is in the midst of a mumps outbreak of more than 300 cases. Given the
outbreaks, state health officials are urging families to check vaccination
records and get up to date before summer.
“Activities
that bring large groups of people together can accelerate the spread of these
diseases,” state epidemiologist Mary DiOrio said in a news release.
Before
the measles vaccine became available in 1963, the virus infected about 500,000
Americans a year, causing 500 deaths and 48,000 hospitalizations. Case counts
since 2000 have ranged from 37 in 2004 to a high of 220 in 2011, the CDC says.
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