About the Measles Outbreak
The measles outbreak continues to spread in the United States, with 981 individual measles cases confirmed as of May 31, 2019, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). This is the greatest number of cases reported in the U.S. since 1994 and since measles was declared eliminated in 2000.
Source: CDC
More than 500 of the cases recorded were in people who had not been vaccinated and sixty-six people have been hospitalized, CDC reported. Currently, there have been no confirmed measles deaths in the U.S., but even with modern medical care, the disease normally kills about one out of every 1,000 victims, according to the CDC. The states that have reported cases to CDC are:
• Arizona
• California
• Colorado
• Connecticut
• Florida
• Georgia
• Illinois
• Indiana
• Iowa
• Kentucky
• Maryland
• Massachusetts
• Michigan
• Missouri
• Nevada
• New Hampshire
• New Jersey
• New York
• Oregon
• Texas
• Tennessee
• Washington
History of the Measles Virus
The measles virus is highly contagious, can be fatal and poses the greatest risk to unvaccinated young children, killing one or two of every 1,000 children who contract it, according to the CDC. It can also cause permanent hearing loss or intellectual disabilities. As of 2000, measles virus was no longer circulating in the U.S. Each year after 2000, a few cases arrived from overseas, either in immigrants or in returning tourists, but each outbreak was eliminated. Around the world, measles cases fell 80 percent between 2000 and 2016, with deaths dropping to 90,000 a year from 550,000. But two years ago, cases began rebounding, driven by a combination of poverty, warfare, tight vaccine supplies and, in some countries, hesitation about vaccination.
