Measles In CT: 2 Cases Among Over 300 Nationwide

CONNECTICUT — More than 300 measles cases have been reported in 15 states including Connecticut through March 21, 2019, according to preliminary numbers released this week by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

So far, the CDC says there have been 314 measles cases in the U.S. in 2019, which is already higher than the total number of cases reported in seven of the last nine years. In 2018, there were a total of 372 measles cases reported in the U.S., according to the CDC’s preliminary statistics.

“Anyone who is unvaccinated is at risk for measles and puts other unvaccinated people, both in and outside their community, at risk of contracting this dreaded disease,” the CDC said.

The 15 states that have reported cases to the CDC in 2019 are Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Georgia, Illinois, Kentucky, Michigan, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Texas and Washington.

Separately, the CDC is tracking six measles outbreaks across the country. In Rockland County, New York — one of the jurisdictions where the CDC is tracking an outbreak — officials declared a state of emergency on Tuesday, which bars anyone who is under the age of 18 and unvaccinated from public places.

The other locations where the CDC is tracking outbreaks include:

New York City
Washington
Texas
Illinois
California

In Connecticut, The Connecticut Department of Public Health (DPH) announced earlier this year that it had confirmed a second case of measles in a New Haven County adult. Both cases were hospitalized and have been released. In 2018, three cases of measles were reported in Connecticut.

“Measles is very easily spread from person to person,” said CT DPH Commissioner Dr. Raul Pino. “If you have a fever and a rash and you think you might have measles, you should avoid public settings and telephone your healthcare provider BEFORE going directly to a healthcare facility so steps can be taken to avoid possibly exposing others.”

CDC recommends all children get two doses of MMR vaccine, starting with the first dose at 12- through 15-months of age, and the second dose at 4 through 6 years of age. One dose of measles vaccine is about 93% effective at preventing measles if exposed to the virus. Two doses are about 97% effective. Measles vaccine does not cause measles illness.

The CDC says the majority of people who get measles are unvaccinated and the disease can spread when it reaches a community where groups of people haven’t received the MMR vaccine.
To explain just how contagious measles is, the Texas Department of Health and Human Services writes that if someone has the disease, 90 percent of people around that person who are not immune will become infected.

The CDC says more measles cases can occur if there’s an increase in the number of travelers who have measles that travel to the U.S. or if the disease spreads within pockets of unvaccinated communities.