HILLSBOROUGH, Fla. — Health officials are still tracking measles cases.
“This is remarkably transmissible. Much more than flu, much, much more than COVID,” said Dr. Laura Arline, Chief Quality Officer for BayCare.
In February, an outbreak of measles cases was linked to Manatee Bay Elementary School in South Florida.
“One in five people who get the measles will wind up hospitalized,” said Arline.
“Getting measles can be very severe for a child,” said Dr. Doug Ross, Chief Medical Officer for AdventHealth Tampa.
In the past month, the Florida Department of Health has reported 10 measles cases—nine in Broward County and one in Polk.
While officials said there have been no new cases linked to the South Florida outbreak, doctors believe it’s likely we’ll see more cases in different parts of the state.
“If you are unvaccinated and exposed to the measles, there's a 90% chance that you will get the measles,” said Arline.
According to the CDC, Florida is one of 17 states that have reported measles.
Experts said most cases appear in unvaccinated people. Many officials believe vaccine hesitancy, which increased with the COVID-19 vaccine, is to blame.
“As less people are getting the vaccination, those people are prone to getting measles,” said Ross.
The CDC declared measles eliminated in 2000, and there have been no new treatments or cures for the virus.
“What we did was vaccinate and try to get rid of it. And so I think that hesitancy piece is very scary,” said Dr. Jill Roberts, Associate Professor for the USF College of Public Health.
“Honestly, the science has been around for so long, especially for the measles vaccine. I mean it’s overall a safe vaccination,” said Ross.
Doctors in Tampa Bay have been preparing for potential measles patients just in case.
“Just so everyone is on high alert, you see these kinds of things in waves, and you tend to forget in between, and we want to make sure it’s top of mind for everybody,” said Arline.
Hospitals have sent notices to their staff and reminders about what symptoms to look for in patients since they don’t usually see measles.
“When I started my training back in the day very long ago, it was something that we learned about more as a textbook type of diagnosis. As vaccination rates have fallen, it’s definitely become more of a concern and something that I’m actually looking out for even just with regular rashes,” said Dr. Sharon Rachapudi, a pediatrician with AdventHealth.
Symptoms include a fever, watery eyes, cough and a rash.
If you think someone in your family might have measles, call your doctor before bringing them in.
