MEASLES CASES ACROSS the country have skyrocketed in 2019, toppling a nearly 20-year, modern-era record in just under four months.
Federal health officials this week said there had been 695 cases of the highly contagious viral infection in 22 states in 2019, surpassing the 667 cases seen in 2014, which had been the highest amount recorded in the U.S. since measles was declared eliminated in the country in 2000.
This year’s high case count has been driven primarily by large outbreaks in Washington state, New York City and New York, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The outbreaks in New York have been raging for months and represent some of the “largest and longest lasting (outbreaks) since measles elimination in 2000,” the CDC said.
As of Wednesday, officials had confirmed 390 cases in New York City, 232 cases in Rockland County and 32 cases elsewhere in New York since October.
“The longer these outbreaks continue, the greater the chance measles will again get a sustained foothold in the United States,” the CDC said.