The county at the center of Pennsylvania’s measles outbreak is at a clear disadvantage because, local officials say, it lacks its own health department and it will now get special assistance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). As of Wednesday, Pennsylvania had confirmed 1,222 measles cases, up from 86 the week before. Six measles-associated deaths have also been confirmed by the state.
The CDC announced on Thursday it would send a scientist – specifically, a “disease detective” – from the agency’s epidemic intelligence service to help tackle Pennsylvania’s growing outbreak. The spokesperson also added that the CDC director, Dr Erica Schwartz, recommends the MMR vaccine “as the most effective way to prevent measles and protect against infection”. The network also reported that in addition to the deployment of the “disease detective,” the CDC was releasing nearly $4m to aid the measles response efforts in Pennsylvania.
Lancaster county, the focus of the state’s outbreak with more than 415 confirmed cases as of 9 October, is the largest county in the state to not have its own health department. The plain community, or Amish, who have historically had lower rates of vaccination, make up about 8% of the county’s population. The Guardian reported earlier this month that the state was bracing for a wave of measles cases, with some public health officials sharing concern that it was “only a matter of time” until the disease spread beyond the outbreak’s center.
The outbreak also comes amid concerns that public health in the US has been hit by growing vaccine skepticism, particularly because of the influence of the controversial health secretary, Robert F Kennedy Jr. Kennedy has also notably had a public dispute with the Pennsylvania governor, Josh Shapiro, who has lambasted the administration and Kennedy for spreading vaccine misinformation. He continued: “There’s real-life consequences to spreading misinformation.
There’s real-life consequences to scaring people.” Alice Yoder, who was elected to the Lancaster county board of commissioners in 2023 and previously worked as a critical care nurse, told the Guardian that county officials were “very concerned” about the outbreak and that, without its own health department, the county was at a clear disadvantage. And most importantly, we would have an established staff, which has established relationships with a variety of partners within our community, which means that once we find a sign of an outbreak we would be able to respond to it really quickly.” Yoder, who is now advocating for the county to establish its own health department, added that because the county doesn’t have one, she and her colleagues find out about measles cases and deaths only through media announcements at the same time as the general public. An advantage for counties in Pennsylvania that do have their own health departments, such as Montgomery, is their ability to work with local community health initiatives, like coalitions aimed at promoting immunity.
Susan Wenrick, vice-chair of the Montgomery County Immunization Coalition, which is made up of members of county government, healthcare professionals and other community members, said one of the coalition’s main goals was to improve access to vaccines. She added: “These are challenging times due to the amount of misinformation that is available, along with the average person turning to Google or social media for their health information instead of consulting their healthcare professional. A big part of MCIC’s efforts is to provide trusted resources for all.” As of Friday, the CDC reported 4,410 measles cases nationwide, marking an increase of 330 from its update last week.
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