A Measles Outbreak in Oregon

A public health emergency is occurring in Oregon because children are not getting their vaccinations. In an area north of Portland, at least 23 young people are sick with the measles, a viral illness that causes fever, runny nose, cough and red bumps on the body. 

Twenty of the 23 sick kids had not been vaccinated for measles. Most of them are under the age of ten. 

Measles cases are surging around the world, and the World Health Organization has expressed alarm. Before the vaccine was introduced, the disease would kill between 400 and 500 people every year, and sicken millions of others. The illness was almost eliminated at one point in the US; there were under 100 cases a year around 2000. The disease is coming back, however.

Sources: CDC, WHO