Fox 2 Detroit: Michigan officials explain why measles cases at 28-year high

Authors of a 2018 study out of the Baylor College of Medicine said states with a high number of non-medical exemptions for vaccines might mean more cases in those states. The evidence “suggests that outbreaks of vaccine-preventable diseases could either originate from or spread rapidly throughout these populations of un-immunized, unprotected children.” One of those locations was the Detroit area – specifically Oakland, Macomb and Wayne counties. A year later, that same region is under threat of the state's largest measles outbreak in almost 30 years. With 40 reported cases since mid-March, experts are warning if the outbreak is not curbed soon the infection rate may continue to accelerate. “I think it's something parents should be concerned about,” said Paul Kilgore at the Eugene Applebaum College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences at Wayne State. “The most important intervention they can do is to actually get vaccinated. If nothing else is done, it will continue to be spread.” Measles is one of the most infectious diseases out there, capable of spreading from one case to 18 people. “The number of people that an infected person can spread (the disease) to is very high. It's one of the highest that we know of,” said Kilgore.

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