US measles outbreak •

Top New York lawmaker urges CDC for free measles vaccination shots

A top New York lawmaker on Sunday said that the federal government should provide the citizens with free measles vaccine and booster shot in a bid to check the further spread of the recent outbreak of the contagious disease.

Sen. Chuck Schumer urged the federal health body, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), to provide free shots against measles and other dangerous infections at schools as well as health clinics in order to contain the spread.

“We need to do everything possible to prevent the measles from spreading before it becomes endemic. Surprisingly, a significant number of people are not vaccinated,” Schumer said.

At least 102 confirmed cases of measles have been reported so far this year in 15 different American states, including New York.

Most of these reported cases of measles are linked to the outbreak that triggered from California’s Disneyland, where an infected person from outside the country had probably visited in December.

Last Thursday, five babies under one–year-old were diagnosed with measles at an Illinois day care center.

New York reported the case of a student, who had contracted measles during his visit to Germany, boarding an Amtrak train at Penn Station to go to Rhinebeck.

Schumer expressed concern over the rising cases of the dangerous disease, saying “Unfortunately, it appears like every day we hear of a new victim of measles.”

Measles is highly contagious disease. Some of its common symtoms include coughing, eye infection, fever, rashes, vomiting, ear infections. In some cases, it can even cause deafness and death.

It is noteworthy, the serious disease was practically eliminated in the US 12 years ago.

The disease is of more concerning the health experts as well as the lawmakers as the myths of the parents, which is based on their religious beliefs, are stopping them from getting their children vaccinated. Moreover, a debunked report that claimed the vaccination shots are linked to autism has also made the parents to opt the shots out.

Illinois reports five confirmed cases of babies infected with measles

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The Illinois health officials on Thursday confirmed five cases of babies diagnosed with measles at a suburban Chicago daycare center, adding to the concerns over the rising outbreak of the contagious disease across the United States.

In a statement, the Illinois and Cook County health departments said that the health officials are looking into the cluster of measles cases at Palatine-based KinderCare Learning Center.

Among the infected are children under one- year-old. As the dose of vaccine begins at 12 months, hence all the infants have not been subject to routine measles vaccination.

The health officials, however, not provided details over the source of the infection.

Dr. Nirav Shah, director of the Illinois Department of Public Health, in a statement said, “These cases underscore the need for everyone who is eligible for the vaccine to ensure that they have been vaccinated. There are certain individuals who, because of their age or clinical condition, cannot be vaccinated.”

Illinois had recently diagnosed an adult with measles. The health officials said that the diagnoses for the adult and two of the five babies were confirmed through lab testing. On the other hand, the test results for the other three cases are still pending. However, they have been diagnosed on the basis of clinical and epidemiological factors.

More than 100 cases of measles have been reported across the United States, with many traced to an outbreak linked to the visit of an infected foreign national to Disneyland theme park in Anaheim, California, in December last year.

The highly contagious respiratory disease, Measles, can have the symptoms like red and sore eyes, fever, cough, runny nose and skin rashes. It can be fatal in some cases when the immune system is very weak.

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) report shows 644 cases of measles were reported from 27 states in 2014, which is the most since 2000.

CDC confirms 94 measles cases in eight states in US

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Amid the measles outbreak linked with California’s Disneyland continues to spread across the United States, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has confirmed 94 cases of the contagious disease across eight states since the beginning of 2015.

Of all the confirmed cases, at least 67 are linked with the outbreak at Disney park in California. The very contagious disease has not been reported in Texas so far.

The measles cases in the United States have crossed 100-mark only five times since 2001. Last year, the country reported a startling 644 confirmed cases of measles. Observing the rapid increase in the infection among the Americans, the health experts have predicted 100 confirmed cases by February this year.

According to the CDC data, Texas might be in a better position than most of the country in preventing an outbreak.

The doctors are strictly recommending the patients infected with the disease or those not received vaccination against the disease to receive two immunizations from measles. According to them, the first immunization should come between 12 and 15 months of age and the second comes between the ages of 4 and 6 years.

Among the people who are at the increased risk of getting infected are children, mostly infants, pregnant women and elderly people. The virus infects 90 percent of people who are not vaccinated and have come in contact with an infected person.

California confirms 26 measles cases linked to Disneyland

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California health department on Monday confirmed few more cases of measles in the people who had last month made a visit to Disneyland and nearby the California Adventure park, taking the total number of infected people to 26.

According to the California Department of Public Health, the state has reported a total of 22 confirmed cases of measles linked with the visits to the Anaheim parks from December 15 and 20, including one case in which the person directly contracted the disease from an infected person.

In addition, two confirmed cases have been reported in Utah and one case each in both Washington state and Colorado, the health department said.

The health officials also said that they are currently investigating four more possible cases of measles as six of those who were ill were eventually sent to hospital.

Meanwhile, the health officials at Walt Disney Parks and Resorts have said that they are working with the California health department in order to provide information and assistance in the measles outbreak.

Measles is a contagious viral disease that may be sometimes fatal. It mainly starts on the face and then further spreads downward.

Some of the common symptoms include cough, runny nose, fever and red eyes, followed by appearance of red rashes on the skin.

Health experts say there is no specific cure or treatment for it. Most people recover from the disease within a few weeks. It can prove to be fatal in poor and malnourished children as well as those with reduced immunity.

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