Rabbi Moshe Meir Weiss on the Anti-Vaxx Insanity!
Rockland
County's measles outbreak has reached 68 cases, with another 11 cases
under investigation — the largest in New York state in decades — county
officials said Tuesday morning.
The outbreak,
which originated in Israel, has mainly affected the Orthodox Jewish
community, primarily in New Square, Monsey and Spring Valley.
There
are also 11 confirmed cases in Lakewood, New Jersey, and 24 in
Brooklyn: four in Borough Park and 13 in Williamsburg, according to
health departments in New York City and New Jersey.
The last large outbreak in the state was in 2013 with 58 cases when a teenager brought measles from London to New York City.
The
New York City Health Department said all the Brooklyn cases affected
children who were mostly unvaccinated or too young to be vaccinated,
while Rockland health officials said the patients were adults, teens and
children.
Rockland has a 94 percent vaccination rate, according to county officials.
Non-immunized
children are banned from attending Rockland schools that have less than
an 80 percent vaccination rate, which includes 34 local private Jewish
schools.
Rockland health officials, with the
assistance of state health officials, do daily checks at the schools to
ensure that non-immunized children are not attending, officials said.
The children will not be allowed to return until 21 days after the last
known case of measles have passed.
County and state
health departments, along with local physicians and health centers,
administered more than 6,100 doses of the measles, mumps, rubella
vaccines since the outbreak began in early October. Nearly 3,000 of
those were given by the Refuah Health Center in Spring Valley.
Refuah,
which has a large Orthodox Jewish clientele and whose name is the
Hebrew word for healing, has been working with the county and state
health departments since the outbreak began.
The
health center has been offering a daily “newborn mobile” parked outside
the building for babies under the age of 6 months who are too young for
their first shot, and a front-door triage where patients are checked for
measles symptoms before entering the center to prevent exposure to
other patients.
Symptoms, which usually appear
10-12 days after exposure but may appear as early as seven days and as
late as 21 days after exposure, include a fever, rash, cough,
conjunctivitis (red, watery eyes) or runny nose. People are considered
infectious from four days before to four days after the appearance of
the rash.
Refuah has also been providing community education and outreach to residents about measles and vaccinations.
How it started
The
first cases of measles came from three groups of travelers: one person
visiting from Israel, one person coming home from a visit to Israel and
three others traveling together after a visit to Israel.
Israel
is in the middle of a measles outbreak with more than 1,500 confirmed
cases, according to the nation’s minister of health. One child has died
there from measles.
The U.S. Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention showed 142 cases of measles and 11 outbreaks in
25 states and the District of Columbia as of Oct. 6, shortly after this
outbreak began. An outbreak is defined as three or more linked cases.
Other
recent outbreaks include one in 2015 when a visitor to Disney theme
parks in California spread measles to seven other states and two other
countries. There were 147 confirmed measles cases in that outbreak.
The
year before had the largest outbreak in the country in more than two
decades, when there were 383 cases among the largely unvaccinated Amish
community.
Outbreaks are costly. The 2013 outbreak
in New York City cost nearly $400,000 and took a total of 10,054 hours
of manpower, according to a report by Dr. Jennifer Rosen published in
JAMA Pediatrics, a medical journal from the American Medical
Association.
What is measles?
- Measles is a highly contagious respiratory disease caused by a virus that is spread by direct contact with nasal or throat secretions of infected people.
- Measles can be dangerous, especially for babies and young children, as it can lead to pneumonia, brain damage, deafness, and death. About one out of four people who get measles will be hospitalized.
- There have been hospitalizations in this outbreak, including one child in Rockland who was in the pediatric intensive care unit, according to health care officials.
- Others who are at high risk for complications include pregnant women who are not immune, as well as those who are immunocompromised or immunosuppressed (when your body can't fight disease).
- Individuals are considered protected or immune to measles: if they were born before 1957; had two doses of the MMR vaccine; had a physicians or provider confirm measles; or have a lab test confirming immunity.
- The MMR vaccine is 97 percent effective after two doses. Those who are immunized but still get measles have much milder cases, according to county health officials. Typically the first MMR vaccine is given at 12 to 15 months of age and the second dose at four to six years. Vaccinations can also be given later or in the case of an outbreak, as early as six months old.
- Anyone who is unsure of their vaccination status should contact their health care provider. There are currently no MMR clinics scheduled. To receive a dose of the vaccine, contact your local health care provider.
- Residents can get more information about measles by visiting www.health.ny.gov/publications/2170.pdf and by calling the state Department of Health toll-free Measles Information Line at 888-364-4837.