CDC Issues Measles Warning

Thank the anti-vaxxers.

The number of measles cases this year, as of April 18, stood at 129 compared with 189 for all of 2013. The virus is making its way into United States via international travel from other countries — particularly the Philippines — and then spreading among pockets of unvaccinated Americans, said Anne Schuchat, MD, director of the CDC's National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, at a news conference today. Dr. Schuchat said that celebrity vaccine opponents such as Jenny McCarthy "get a lot of attention," but that the most trusted sources of information for most Americans on immunizations are their physicians, nurses, and pharmacists. "American clinicians are still strongly supporting adherence to recommendations [from the CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices]," she said.