On November 22nd, I wrote a post about the alarmingly low vaccination rate against measles in certain parts of this country. This is incredibly dangerous, and our infectious disease present has arrived early. The Washington Post reports on South Carolina public health officials who warn that an outbreak of measles is accelerating. So far, 111 measles cases have been reported, with 105 of them being in unvaccinated individuals. (There is a small chance you can get measles even if you are vaccinated. One dose of the measles vaccine is 93% effective, while two doses are 97% effective at stopping the illness.) The infections currently center around Way of Truth Church in Inman, S. C. They are attempting to quarantine people, but it’s probably a lost cause. Measles has an incubation period of 10 days before symptoms typically appear, and I expect an explosion of cases in the next week in the state. If you live in the area and are not protected, get vaccinated, now!
South Carolina is one of several areas in the U.S. that have suffered from measles outbreaks this year. As always, the vast majority of cases are in unvaccinated individuals. The proportion of the population vaccinated with MMR in South Carolina is 85%, far below the 95% coverage you need to prevent spread. Thus, it is not surprising that an epidemic popped up there. Measles used to kill 6,000 children a year in the U.S. If you are unsure of your vaccination status, especially if you live in areas with large populations of unvaccinated individuals, verify your immunization status and, if you need to, get vaccinated. I was in a cohort of students that received an ineffective vaccine as a child, and I just recently got an MMR booster to protect myself against measles. Check out my other post to see vaccination rates in your area.