World

US recorded 14 new cases of measles

July 15, 2019
New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio speaks during a news conference declaring a public health emergency in parts of Brooklyn in response to a measles outbreak, requiring unvaccinated people living in the affected areas to get the vaccine or face fines, in the Orthodox Jewish community of the Williamsburg neighborhood, in Brooklyn, New York City, in this April 9, 2019 file photo. — Reuters
New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio speaks during a news conference declaring a public health emergency in parts of Brooklyn in response to a measles outbreak, requiring unvaccinated people living in the affected areas to get the vaccine or face fines, in the Orthodox Jewish community of the Williamsburg neighborhood, in Brooklyn, New York City, in this April 9, 2019 file photo. — Reuters

WASHINGTON — The United States recorded 14 new measles cases between July 3 and July 11, federal health officials said on Monday, signaling a slowdown in the spread of the disease, which has infected 1,123 people this year in the worst US outbreak since 1992.

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said the new cases represented a 1.3 percent increase since the previous week and that it has recorded cases of the highly contagious and sometimes deadly disease in 28 states.

In recent weeks, the CDC has reported smaller increases in the number of measles cases, compared with a surge of more than a hundred cases reported in a single week earlier this year.

Disease outbreaks have not been reported in any new states since June 10.

The running tally of cases this year includes active cases and those that have since resolved. No fatalities have been reported.

Health experts say the virus has spread mostly among school-age children whose parents declined to give them the measles-mumps-rubella vaccine, which confers immunity to the disease. A vocal fringe of US parents cites concerns that the vaccine may cause autism, despite scientific studies that have debunked such claims.

Measles was declared eliminated in the United States in 2000, meaning there was no continuous transmission of the disease for a year. Still, cases of the virus occur and spread via travelers coming from countries where measles is common.

CDC officials have warned that the country risks losing its measles elimination status if the ongoing outbreak, which began in October 2018 in New York, continues until October 2019. — Reuters


July 15, 2019
40 views
HIGHLIGHTS
World
5 hours ago

Trump trial: Publisher says he suppressed negative news

World
6 hours ago

Dozens of Ethiopians die after boat capsizes off Djibouti coast

World
6 hours ago

Modi: India’s prime minister eyeing a historic third term