If you had any doubt about the severity of this current measles outbreak, I think that it’s pretty safe to say that it’s real, it’s serious, and it’s only going to get worse before it improves.
The current outbreak is thought to have originated in orthodox communities in New York state.
Vaccination rates in those communities are lower than average and there is also currently an outbreak in Israel, where it’s thought that Jewish travelers may have contracted it and brought it home.
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As of April 29, 2019, the CDC has confirmed 704 cases of measles across 22 states.
Those are only confirmed cases, though, where the patient saw a doctor and was tested. It’s likely that there are many more people actually with the illness but not reporting it.
You might wonder why someone wouldn’t report it, but it’s pretty common.
Between the cost of doctors’ appointments and being shamed for any anti-vax beliefs they may have, some people don’t bother to go.
Which just perpetuates the whole outbreak problem.
Until now, Alabama was one of the states without any cases, but it’s now joined the ranks.
On May 2, 2019, a warning was released stating that more than 600 people had been contacted by the Tennessee Department of Public Health.
An unvaccinated man carrying the virus had recently travelled through Tennessee, Mississippi, and Alabama, potentially infecting anyone he crossed paths with.
That same day, news broke that a 5-month-old baby girl was the first official case in Alabama.
The girl’s mom, Audrey Peine, took her to see a doctor after she developed a fever, runny nose, and rash.
After testing, doctors confirmed that she had the measles.
In a Facebook post, Audrey ranted about how hard she’d been working to keep baby Emma healthy.
“I breastfed her for her entire life. I kept her up to date on her vaccinations. I took her to the doctor when she was sick. And she tested positive for something she was too young to be vaccinated for.”
In the end, she was forced to make her post private, due to the number of attacks she received from anti-vaxx commenters.
Her post specifically pointed out how the anti-vaxx movement affected her family:
“She got sick because of the negligence of other parents who choose not to vaccinate their children. She got sick because the measles is on the rise due to carelessness of other mothers. Read the statistics. This disease was not something to worry about a few years ago. Now my daughter has it. Like the other mother who’s five-month-old was diagnosed in California, I feel like my community failed us.”
Emma was contagious between April 23 and May 1, though thankfully, she is not in daycare where the virus could easily spread.
Thankfully, Emma is recovering well, but the Alabama Department of Public Health says they currently have 32 other open measles investigations, so the outbreak has truly arrived in the state.
h/t: WVTM 13
