WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump on Friday urged Americans to protect themselves with the measles vaccination as the number of cases of the once-eradicated disease hit the highest levels in the United States since 2000.
The growing outbreak in pockets across the country has triggered multiple public health investigations seeking to limit exposure to measles, including quarantines at universities.
“They have to get their shots,” Trump told reporters at the White House.
Nearly 700 cases have been confirmed by federal health officials so far this year in a resurgence that has so far been concentrated in a handful of states, including New York, Washington, Michigan, New Jersey and California.
The nationwide measles outbreak has led health officials to quarantine dozens of people at two Los Angeles universities.
The quarantine affects the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) and California State University, Los Angeles (Cal State LA) and comes as the United States battles the highest number of measles cases since the country declared the virus eliminated in 2000.
The people ordered quarantined at the two California campuses were exposed to measles and could not provide evidence they had been immunized against the disease, the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health said in a statement.
“Both universities are assisting with the implementation of quarantine orders and determining how best to support students who must be quarantined and who live on campus,” the Department of Public Health said.
US public health officials have blamed the nationwide outbreak, which coincides with a global rise in the prevalence of the disease, in part on the spread of misinformation about the safety of vaccines.
Although the disease was eliminated from the country in 2000, meaning the virus was no longer continually present year-round, outbreaks still happen via travelers coming from countries where measles is common, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says.
Leave a Comment