(HealthDay)—The number of reported measles cases in the United States hit 465 as of April 4, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Monday. That is 78 more than in the previous week’s update, CNN reported.
In the update, the CDC said that Florida, Indiana, Massachusetts, and Nevada had their first cases of measles this year, bringing the total number of states reporting cases to 19. The other states are Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Georgia, Illinois, Kentucky, Michigan, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Texas, and Washington, CNN reported. The number of measles cases this year “is the second greatest number of cases reported in the United States since measles was eliminated in 2000,” according to the CDC. Last year’s total was 372 cases. The largest outbreak occurred in 2014, with 667 cases, CNN reported.
Meanwhile, a public health emergency has been declared in New York City as it grapples with one of the largest measles outbreaks in decades, which is centered in the ultra-Orthodox Jewish community in Brooklyn. Unvaccinated people living in certain ZIP codes in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, will have to get the measles vaccine, and those who do not comply will be issued violations and possibly fines, Mayor Bill de Blasio said, The New York Times reported.
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