NYDOH: 3 measles cases identified in Orange County children
The cases are patients less than 5 years old who recently traveled internationally.
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Three measles cases were identified in children living in Orange County, according to the New York State Department of Health.
The cases are patients less than 5 years old who recently traveled internationally.
Two of them have been confirmed to be under 12 months old and too young to be vaccinated, according to the Orange County Health Department.
These cases make seven in the state this year, amid a global and domestic increase in measles cases.
"Our epidemiology and vaccine experts at the State Health Department and the State's Wadsworth Lab are working in collaboration with the health officials of Orange County and the surrounding areas to monitor and investigate any cases or potential exposures," state health commissioner Dr. James McDonald said.
The DOH says no additional exposures outside of immediate family members are known to have occurred at this time.
Doctors in the Hudson Valley are on high alert.
"We are just hearing about three cases and I'm worried about every county that's surrounding Orange County," says Dr. Anjana Poonthota, chair of Pediatrics for Garnet Health.
Doctors say the best way to prevent the spread is to get vaccinated.
Lisa Lahiff, Orange County Health Department Deputy Commissioner
"Keep in mind that it's our civic responsibility to help take care of each other and this is one of the ways we can do that," says Dr. Jamee Goldstein, with Monroe Pediatrics, Allied Physicians Group.
Read more about the cases in Orange County here
