The total number of measles cases in the U.S. so far this year has risen to 712, according to the CDC’s weekly update published on April 11. CIDRAP has the news.
Seven outbreaks make up 93% of the reported cases. Infections “have been reported from 25 jurisdictions, 3 more than last week. Among the sick patients, 97% were unvaccinated or had unknown vaccination status.” The main hot spot for cases remains west Texas, “but infections continue to rise in other states, such as Ohio, as the virus crops up in new ones, such as Arkansas.”
Texas has reported 541 cases since late January, and more than half of those are in Gaines County. All but 11 patients “were unvaccinated or had unknown vaccination status.” 56 patients have been hospitalized, and two have died. New Mexico’s case total has risen to 58, and all three of the affected counties border Texas; additionally, “some measles activity in Kansas and Oklahoma has been linked to the Texas outbreak.”
Arkansas has also reported its first case of measles since 2018, which “involves an unvaccinated child from Saline County who had traveled out of state.” The state’s second case was reported shortly after in an unvaccinated child from another county who had also traveled out of state.
Matt MacKenzie | Associate Editor
Matt is Associate Editor for Healthcare Purchasing News.
