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South Carolina Ends 997-Case Measles Outbreak After Six Months of Containment
South Carolina public health officials declared an end to a measles outbreak that infected 997 people over six months. The state marked 42 days without new cases, though pockets of low immunity persist. Nationwide, over 1,700 measles cases have been confirmed this year amid multiple ongoing outbreaks.
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U.S. since 1991 on Monday. The state marked 42 days with no new cases reported related to the outbreak on Sunday. Over a six-month period starting last October, 997 people were infected with measles in South Carolina.
Most of the 997 infected people in South Carolina were unvaccinated children. At least 21 people were hospitalized with measles complications in South Carolina. The virus infected nearly 1,000 people in the state before the state declared it over.
The measles outbreak in South Carolina was largely contained to the northwest region of the state. The measles outbreak in South Carolina was centered in Spartanburg County. D.C. in January. Dr. Edward Simmer is the interim director of the South Carolina Department of Public Health.
Dr. Edward Simmer said the outbreak never went statewide thanks to timely investigations, identification of those exposed, and people's willingness to stay home. "In many ways, this was a textbook response to dealing with an outbreak," Simmer said, according to NPR.
Dr.
Strict public health measures and increased vaccination helped curb the outbreak in South Carolina. The majority of schools in Spartanburg County had measles vaccination rates below the 95% threshold required to prevent outbreaks. Dr.
Brannon Traxler said pockets of people who lack immunity remain in Spartanburg County and throughout the state, so there is an ongoing risk there. At a briefing Monday, Traxler said while many measles cases were mild, "it was, at times, life-threatening or potentially long lasting for others," NPR reported. , according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
