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Category: News

Washington, DC - Measles, a disease that was considered eliminated in this country in 2000, is making an unwanted return that is all over the news. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 101 individual cases of measles have been confirmed in 10 states so far this year.

Measles has been reported in California, Colorado, Connecticut, Georgia, Illinois, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Texas and Washington.

The American Red Cross has been involved in a worldwide battle against measles for years. Since 2001, the Red Cross and our partners in the Measles & Rubella Initiative have vaccinated more than two billion children in  88 countries around the world to protect them from both of these deadly diseases. Our partners in this lifesaving program include the United Nations Foundation, the CDC, UNICEF and World Health Organization. With this latest outbreak here at home, the Red Cross wants everyone to know about measles – just how contagious it is, how to recognize it, what you should do if exposed to measles and more.

HOW DID THIS OUTBREAK HAPPEN?

Measles is still a common disease in some parts of the world and travelers either bring measles into the U.S. or someone from this country gets measles while traveling and brings it home. The disease can spread in a community where a large number of people have not been vaccinated, which the CDC reports is what is currently occurring.

All 50 states and the District of Columbia require vaccinations for children entering kindergarten, however all states also provide medical exemptions to these requirements and some states also offer exemptions for religious and philosophical reasons.

TELL ME ABOUT MEASLES

According to the CDC:

AM I AT RISK FOR MEASLES?

The CDC considers you protected from measles if you have records showing at least one of the following:

HOW DO I CARE FOR SOMEONE WITH MEASLES?

The Mayo Clinic makes the following recommendations:

In a recent CNN Opinion post, Gail McGovern, president and CEO of the American Red Cross and Kathy Calvin, president and CEO of the United Nations Foundation had this to say about measles: “In the United States, Europe and Latin America, we're seeing more and more headlines proclaiming a child has suffered due to measles -- a disease that is easily preventable by vaccination.

“As the disease surges to its highest levels in more than a decade, it's imperative that we all come together to stop the world from backsliding any further -- and that means ensuring everyone gets vaccinated. Unless we act -- and fast -- more people will get the virus and die. And many of the victims will be children.”