CDC: Already More Measles Cases in 2015 than Median Number from 2001 to 2010
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Credit: James Gathany/Centers for Disease Control and Prevention(NEW YORK) — The U.S. Centers for Disease Control said Thursday that the number of measles cases in the U.S. since January 1 is already higher than the annual total case counts for several recent full years.
In total, the CDC said there have been 84 cases of measles in 2015, with 67 of those linked to the outbreak at California’s Disneyland. The California outbreak includes six other states as well.
Between 2001 and 2010, the median number of measles cases per year in the U.S. was just 60.
Dr. Anne Schuchat from the CDC’s National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases said on Thursday that for every 1,000 U.S. children who get measles, one to three will die from it — “regardless of best treatment.”
Interestingly, the CDC also notes that the U.S. experienced the highest number of measles cases in 20 years in 2014, with 644 cases linked to 20 outbreaks.
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