Once the scourge of many a child’s childhood, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention declared measles eliminated from the United States in 2000.

But the scourge has returned, and today it’s dramatically on the rise. According to the CDC, by early March, “cases of the highly infectious disease had already exceeded the total number of cases for all of 2023.” As of early April, cases of measles had been reported in 18 U.S. jurisdictions: Arizona, California, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Louisiana, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New Jersey, New York City and state, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia and Washington.

The resumption of international travel following pandemic restrictions is one reason why. Measles still occurs frequently in other parts of the world, and that’s especially true now. The World Health Organization has reported a spike in measles cases worldwide, including many popular tourist destinations often thought to be benign, such as England.

The reason the United States saw a zero outbreak by 2000 was due to our robust childhood vaccination program. This is not the situation throughout the world, and so measles easily comes to the United State by way of unvaccinated travelers. Typically, this happens when people who live in America visit countries where there are measles outbreaks and return to their communities where people aren’t up-to-date on their vaccination. From then, the disease spreads quickly. Very quickly, as the CDC notes:

– Measles is so contagious that if one person has it, up to 90% of the people close to them can also become infected if they are not protected by vaccination (or, less commonly, prior infection).

– The measles virus can stay in the air for up to 2 hours after an infected person left an indoor space.

– Someone can get infected by simply being in a room where a person with measles walked through.

– In addition, people with measles can transmit to others when their symptoms are fever, cough and runny nose, which look like common respiratory viruses.

The seriousness of this disease is not to be discounted.

Children younger than 5 and adults older than 20 are more likely to suffer from complications, the CDC reports. Less severe complications include ear infections and diarrhea. More severe complications, such as pneumonia and encephalitis, are possible and often require hospitalization and even intensive care. This is a real risk for people who are not vaccinated, especially for young children, adults, pregnant persons and people who are immunocompromised. On average, nearly 20 percent — 1 in 5 — unvaccinated people in the United States who get measles need to be hospitalized.

Unfortunately, COVID vaccination regimes have altered or skewed some people’s perception of getting any vaccinations, including one to prevent measles. Other concerns, such as the thought that the vaccination can promote autism, are unfounded.

As the CDC suggests, “key to maintaining the elimination of measles in the U.S. is vaccination. The measles-mumps-rubella vaccine (MMR) (www.cdc.gov/measles/vaccination.html) is part of the national immunization schedule for all children and adults. Vaccination with MMR is the best and safest way to prevent measles. When both doses of MMR vaccine are given (typically when the child is about 1 and 4 years old), MMR is 97% effective at preventing measles. The CDC recommends the safe and effective MMR vaccination as part of the routine immunization schedule for all children and adults, with special guidance for those traveling internationally (www.cdc.gov/measles/plan-for-travel.html).

“With spring break travel coming up and people going to and coming from countries that have seen sharp upticks in measles cases, the time to be sure you and your family members are up to date on their MMR is now,” the CDC promotes. The organization is correct. If you or your children aren’t fully vaccinated, schedule an appointment today.