A deadly measles outbreak in Texas ended in August, but outbreaks in other parts of the United States continue to add hundreds of new measles cases to this year’s record national total.
There have been an average of 27 new measles cases reported each week since the end of August, according to data from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The annual total – now up to 1,563 cases since January – is the highest by a significant margin since measles was declared eliminated in the US a quarter-century ago.
There’s a new outbreak in Ohio, a recent surge in cases in Minnesota and more than 150 unvaccinated schoolchildren in South Carolina are in quarantine because of an ongoing outbreak there.
Before this year, the US had recorded only 10 large measles outbreaks – defined by the CDC as more than 50 related cases – since reaching elimination status in 2000. But an ongoing outbreak along the border between Arizona and Utah is already the third large outbreak this year.
There have been more than 90 confirmed cases related to the outbreak – at least 59 in Arizona and 36 in Utah, according to state health departments – and case counts continue to grow.
Dr. Leisha Nolen, state epidemiologist in Utah, said there is still a lot of opportunity for measles to cont
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