Measles, once thought to be eliminated in the United States, continues to worry public health officials as the number of infected individuals swells past 300.
The most recent US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention statistics report 314 individual confirmed cases of measles in 15 states (Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Georgia, Illinois, Kentucky, Michigan, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Texas, and Washington).
Outbreaks are ongoing in New York City, Washington, Texas, Illinois, California, and in Rockland County, New York, which declared a state of emergency earlier this week mandating that anyone under age 18 who is unvaccinated is prohibited from public places for 30 days or until they receive the MMR vaccine, according to ABC7NY.com.
To shed light on the current measles outbreaks, Contagion® is launching an Insights video series featuring the perspectives of 2 medical experts, 1 with a background in pediatric medicine and 1 public health official.
Glenn Fennelly, MD, MPH, professor and chair of Pediatrics at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School, and a pediatric infectious diseases specialist, and Christina Tan, MD, MPH, an epidemiologist and assistant commissioner with the New Jersey State Department of Health, sit down for an in-depth discussion on the issues of vaccination, individual state laws, exemption definitions, and the role clinicians and public health officials play in these measles outbreaks.
“We live in a global village. The existence of measles anywhere is a threat to children everywhere,” Fennelley says in the program. “We have an opportunity to eliminate and eradicate. Not doing it costs a tremendous amount in terms of lives.”
Fennelly and Tan tackle the history, epidemiology, and transmission of the disease, and debate different ways to conquer vaccine hesitancy and make sure immunocompromised children are protected.
“Unfortunately, we’re always the victims of our own success,” Tan says in the program. “As a practicing physician and as a public health practitioner, we are really proud of the impact that vaccination has made in terms of curbing vaccine-preventable diseases. And not seeing some of the diseases rampant as they were prior to the prevaccination era…sometimes gives people a false sense of security.”
Click here to view the first segment of the 5-part Contagion® Insights program “Measles Outbreaks, Vaccination, and Public Health.”
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