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
Measles cases have been reported in Kentucky and New Jersey as an outbreak of the disease occurred recently in west Texas.
One case of the measles was confirmed in Kentucky involving an adult who had recently been in another country, the Guardian reported on Thursday.
“The person had been at a Planet Fitness gym while infectious, potentially exposing others,” the article said.
Meanwhile, authorities said there are three confirmed cases of the measles in New Jersey, per NBC New York:
According to health officials, the three cases stem from one single laboratory-confirmed case in a Bergen County resident earlier this month. That resident had recently traveled internationally. Within a week, two secondary cases of measles were identified. Both of those individuals had close contact with the infected individual who traveled. Neither of them were vaccinated either, officials said. The three have been under quarantine, minimizing additional exposure.
The news comes after the first U.S. measles death since 2015 was reported in west Texas amid a growing outbreak, Breitbart News reported on Wednesday.
The death was an unvaccinated school-aged child who had been hospitalized for several days, per the Texas Department of State Health Services.
The Breitbart News article continued:
The measles outbreak is occurring in rural West Texas and has totaled 124 cases so far across nine counties. State health officials are saying this is the largest measles outbreak in the state in nearly 30 years. Nine cases have also been reported in eastern New Mexico.
…
While the vaccine series is required for children entering kindergarten in public schools across the nation, the measles cases in West Texas have been in a “close-knit, undervaccinated” Mennonite community, state health department spokesperson Lara Anton has said.
It is important to note the cases are being reported after the disease was declared eliminated from the United States in 2000, per the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
“This meant the absence of the continuous spread of disease was greater than 12 months. This was thanks to a highly effective vaccination program in the United States, as well as better measles control in the Americas region,” the agency said.
Click here to read more about the elimination of measles.
Meanwhile, reports indicate President Donald Trump’s administration is reportedly trying to stop migrants at the border to due to disease concerns, Breitbart News reported on Sunday.