In 2014, the number of measles cases in the United States reached its highest level since the disease was declared eliminated in 2000, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported.
Provisional data show that 644 cases of measles from 27 states in 23 outbreaks were reported to the CDC’s National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases in 2014. The previous postelimination high came in 2011, when 220 cases were reported. The CDC reported that most people that contracted measles were unvaccinated and that travelers with measles continue to bring the infectious disease to the United States.
Meanwhile, 2015 seems to have started off with a bang as California officials have confirmed 59 cases of measles in the state since the end of 2014. Of those cases, “42 have been linked to an initial exposure in December at Disneyland or Disney California Adventure Park in Anaheim,” the California Department of Public Health said in a statement. Measles cases with epidemiologic links to those in Disney include ones in Arizona, Colorado, Mexico, Nebraska, Oregon, Utah, and Washington.
