481 Measles Cases Reported

According to various health agencies and news publishers, measles cases have been reported by 16 states during the 2018-2019 outbreak. 

As of March 23, 2019, the 3 leading measles ‘hot-spots’ in the USA are as follows: 

• New York: 342 measles cases have been reported, from October 2018 through March 23, 2019.
• Washington: 73 measles cases have been reported in Clark County, as of March 22, 2019.
• Texas: 14 measles cases have been confirmed by the Texas Department of State Health Services, as of March 21, 2019.

These 3 states have reported more measles cases than the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) data for the January to March 21, 2019 time frame, which confirmed just 314 measles cases in 15 states. 

This data disparity is generally related to reporting timing. 

Listed below are the 16 state-based measles updates for the week ending March 23, 2019:

• Arizona: The Arizona Department of Health Services and the Pima County Public Health Department announced on March 8, 2019, that a 12-month-old infant from Pima County has been diagnosed with measles.
• California: As of March 22, 2019, 7 confirmed measles cases have been reported. Additionally, the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health confirmed 1 case of measles in a person who traveled through LAX airport while infectious on Thursday, February 21, 2019. And, as of March 2019, 21 confirmed measles cases were reported in California in 2018.
• Colorado: One adult with measles has been confirmed as of February 2019.  A February 2019 report found only 88.7 percent of kindergarteners in Colorado received the MMR vaccine during the 2017-18 school year.
• Connecticut: The Connecticut Department of Public Health confirmed the 2nd case of measles during 2019. In 2018, 3 cases of measles were reported in Connecticut.  
• Georgia: The Georgia Department of Public Health has confirmed 3 measles cases in the metro Atlanta area during 2019.
• Hawaii: The Hawaii State Department of Health confirmed 2 measles cases during February 2019.  
• Illinois: The Illinois Health department confirmed 6 measles cases as of March 23, 2019. On February 22, 2019, an Illinois resident with a now confirmed diagnosis of measles was on a flight that arrived in Concourse B at Chicago Midway Airport. People may have been exposed to measles if they were at Midway Airport on February 22, 2019, between 9 pm and midnight.
• Kentucky: A case of measles has been confirmed in a young child living in the region served by the Barren River District Health Department. The child, who is unvaccinated, recently traveled out of the country to an area where measles is endemic, the Kentucky Department for Public Health reported during February 2019.
• Michigan: The measles outbreak in Oakland County has increased to 8 cases, as of March 22, 2019. All 8 measles cases are believed to be related to a traveler from Israel. Leigh-Anne Stafford, health officer for Oakland County, urged people who don't know whether they've been vaccinated or whether they've had measles in the past to get vaccinated.
• Missouri: State health officials reported on March 17, 2019, that 1 person in eastern Missouri had contracted measles while traveling out of state, without identifying the person or where the person had traveled.
• New Hampshire: The New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services received a report of an international traveler visiting New Hampshire who has been diagnosed with measles, and traveled to New Hampshire when they were able to transmit the virus to others. This person traveled by bus on February 26, 2019, from South Station in Boston, MA, to the Manchester, NH Transportation Center. Any person who rode the same bus is considered exposed to measles, and any person who was present or transited through South Station in Boston, MA on February 26, 2019, from about 8:30 pm through midnight is potentially exposed.
• New Jersey: As of March 22, a total of 8 confirmed measles cases have been reported in NJ for 2019. Six of these cases are associated with this Ocean County measles outbreak. These outbreak-associated cases, in addition to 1 highly suspect case, potentially exposed individuals to the infection in NJ between March 9 and March 14, 2019. And, a traveler at Newark Liberty International Airport may have exposed other people to measles. The infected passenger was at Terminal C traveling to California and may have visited other parts of the airport, according to the New Jersey Department of Health. He traveled from Aruba to Newark. Anyone who was at the airport between March 4 at 9 p.m. and March 5 at 9:30 a.m. may have been exposed. Symptoms could develop as late as March 26. Previously, the NJDOH had reported 33 measles cases in an outbreak in Ocean County.
• New York City: As of March 19, 2019, there have been 181 confirmed cases of measles in NYC since October 2018.
• Monroe County, NY: The Monroe County Department of Public Health has confirmed 7 measles cases during 2019.
• Rockland County, NY: As of March 21, 2019, there are 151 confirmed reported cases of measles in Rockland County, NY, during the 2018-2019 season.
• Sullivan County, NY: On March 14, 2019, the Sullivan County Public Health Department was notified of 2 measles cases in Sullivan County residents.
• Westchester County, NY: The Westchester County Health Department was notified that 1 Monroe College student has been diagnosed with measles.
• Oregon: As of March 22, 2019, there have been 10 confirmed measles cases in Oregon during 2019.
• Texas: The Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS) confirmed 14 measles cases as of March 21, 2019. Previously, DSHS reported 9 confirmed cases in 2018 and just 1 case in 2017.
• Washington: As of March 22, 2019, Clark County Public Health (CCPH) has confirmed 73 measles cases during 2019. The confirmed cases include two cases who traveled to Hawaii and another case who traveled to Bend, Ore. The confirmed cases also include two Clark County residents who moved to Georgia. The case totals do not include confirmed cases from King County, Multnomah County, Ore., or Marion County, Ore.

Measles is a very contagious disease caused by a virus. It spreads through the air when an infected person coughs or sneezes, says the CDC.

Measles can be prevented with a vaccine. In the USA, there are 2 approved measles vaccines, MMR-II and ProQuad, which are available from most pharmacies.

The CDC Vaccine Price List provides private sector vaccine prices for general information. And, measles vaccine discounts can be found here. 

Vaccines, similar to medications, can cause side effects, says the CDC. Significant vaccine side effects should be reported to the CDC.