New York Medical Facilities May Be Contaminated After Recent Measles Outbreak

New York City's Health Department Deputy Commissioner Dr. Jay Varma believes the recent measles outbreak in upper Manhattan might have spread throughout the city's medical facilities due to lack of containment of sickened patients.

Measles, a highly contagious airborne disease that is characterized by rashes, a high fever, red eyes, and other flu-like symptoms, was confirmed in 20 people in New York City just a couple of weeks ago. Now, health officials believe that the disease may have contaminated doctor's offices and emergency rooms in the city.

"We know a number of people were exposed and possibly got their infection either at a doctor's office or at an emergency room where they went and it took more time than it should have for them to be put in an isolation area where they couldn't possibly infect anyone else," Dr. Varma told the New York Times.

Measles was thought to be nearly eradicated in the United States. Its vaccine has contributed to more than a 99% reduction rate in the disease. In the decade before the measles vaccination program, the respiratory disease infected an estimated 3-4 million people in the U.S. each year, causing nearly 500 people to die and 48,000 to be hospitalized each year. The latest CDC numbers revealed there were only 55 measles cases in 2012.

However, this number has ballooned in 2014. Medical experts believe that fewer people are getting vaccinated, which has led to small outbreaks most notably in California and New York. Perhaps because of the rarity of the disease in the U.S., the doctors in New York didn't recognize these patients' symptoms quickly enough to isolate them in time to prevent its spread.

A week ago, New York-Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia University Medical Center sent out an email to notify its staff that patients with measles had checked into the hospital. As a result, they believe nearly 600 patients were exposed to the disease. The email also noted, "Many of our clinical staff have never seen a case of the measles," reported in this New York Times article.

The NYC Health Department is urging city residents to get vaccinated and to see if they're due for a re-vaccination. You can read more about the possible mass measles exposure in this NBC New York local news report.