Measles Case At Public Elementary School In Rockland

NEW CITY, NY — Rockland County's measles outbreak, now at 88 cases, has largely been centered geographically in Ramapo, in the communities of Monsey, New Square and Spring Valley. It has been centered demographically in the ultra-Orthodox community, and restrictions have been put on private schools where immunization rates are lower than 80 percent to keep unvaccinated children home from school.

However, officials have been warning for more than a month that all of Rockland should be considered at risk.

Then last week two things happened that brought their warning home.

First, a new case of measles turned up and health officials tracing it found the person had visited the Best Buy in West Nyack while contagious, exposing everyone who was there at the time.

Then, on Friday, parents at Hempstead Elementary School, in the public school district of East Ramapo, were informed by letter that there had been a case of measles there too.

There was no order to keep un- or under-vaccinated students at home from Hempstead, Health Department officials said, because the 21-day incubation period was already over before the county was informed of the case.

In a Facebook comment on The Power Of Ten page, county officials said:

the Rockland County Department of Health(RCDOH) notified the East Ramapo Central School District and administrators at Hempstead Elementary School of a confirmed case of measles within that school. RCDOH was notified of the case after the 21 day incubation period had ended so no students will need to be excluded at this time.

RCDOH instructed the school, through a letter, to monitor the students for signs and symptoms of measles and asked for a list of every student's immunization status. From previous records, it is known that Hempstead Elementary School has a very high rate of immunization.

As the outbreak has worsened, county health officials have begun recommending that children as young as six months start the vaccination process. They also warned that people born before 1957, who have always been considered immune, could get at least a mild case of measles if exposed in this outbreak.

Rockland health officials have placed restrictions on schools in the geographic center of the outbreak: Monsey, Spring Valley and New Square. Un- or under-vaccinated students may not attend any schools where the vaccination rate is lower than 80 percent until 21 days after the last confirmed case in the county. Officials said that could be months away.

And trouble has begun again in the uneasy relationship in Rockland between some local Hasidic communities and their neighbors, with Rockland County officials taking down one Facebook post about measles because of anti-Semitic commentary. .

SEE:

• UPDATE: Clarkstown Police Seek Information About Anti-Semitic Graffiti
• Political Signs with Anti-Semitic Undertones Appear in Rockland
• Anti-Semitism as Rockland Reacts to East Ramapo Recommendations
• Hate Graffiti Found in Pomona
• After Drowning, Rockland Fights Over Hasidic Ambulance Service
• Yeshivas Drop Fight Against Rockland Fire Inspections
• Illegal School Holding Classes In Stadium Funded Through Fraud
• State Appoints New Monitor for East Ramapo

The way to avoid getting measles is to be immunized.

The Health Department is actively working to contain the further spread of measles. If you are ill with a fever, rash, or conjunctivitis (red watery eyes) – help protect the community by staying home, not having visitors, and not going out in public, health officials said.

Image via CDC

SEE ALSO

• Measles Exposure In Rockland County, Newark Airport
• Rockland, Westchester Exposed To Measles By Another Visitor
• After Recent Measles Scare, Rockland Offers Residents Free Vaccine
• Measles Outbreak: 20 Cases; Unvaccinated Kids Must Stay Home
  
• Measles Outbreak Worsens; More Restrictions In Rockland
  
• Measles Outbreak: 87 Cases In Rockland, 34 In Brooklyn

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Editor's Note: This article has been revised to clarify the incident with the Rockland County Government's Facebook post.