Measles outbreak jumps to 7 Ohio daycares, 1 school—all with unvaccinated kids

The outbreak in Ohio has spread to seven different facilities and a single school with unvaccinated children. The risk of vaccine-preventable diseases mushrooming is highlighted by the outbreak.

On November 9, the health departments of the city of Columbus and Franklin County, which encompasses Columbus, announced an outbreak at one childcare facility, which had sickened four unvaccinated children. Officials reportedly expected that more cases would follow.

There have been 18 confirmed cases as of Wednesday morning. At least 15 of the cases are in children under the age of 4. According to Columbus Public Health, at least six have had to be hospitalized.

Conducting contact tracing at affected facilities is one of the ways health officials are trying to curb the outbreak.

Newman told Ars in an email that the vaccine is very safe and effective. Columbus Public Health offers walk-in vaccine on Mondays and Fridays. Since we don't know what is being given by providers in the community, we don't know if there is an increase or decrease in the number of people getting the vaccine.

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The numbers for the city of Columbus and Franklin County were not readily available from the Ohio health department. If they are given, we will update this story.

Risky situation

There has been a decline in vaccine rates due to the Pandemic as well as anti-vaccine misinformation. In Ohio, 92.4% of kindergarteners had received the vaccine. In the 2020– 2021 school year, coverage fell to 89.6%. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says a 95 percent rate is ideal. There are pockets of low vaccine rates where vaccine-preventable diseases can easily spread.

An estimated 90 percent of unvaccinated people will be exposed to measles if they cough, talk, or simply be in the same room with someone. Symptoms usually show up seven to 14 days after being bitten, starting with a high temperature that can go up to 104 F. A rash appears a few days after that.

In the decade before the vaccine was available, the CDC estimated that up to 4 million people in the US could have been exposed to the disease and up to 500 could have died.

Measles was eliminated from the US in 2020 thanks to vaccinations. Travelers bring it into the country from time to time, posing a constant threat of outbreak in areas with low vaccinations. The US almost lost its status as a measles-free country due to the spread of the disease for more than a year.