Local health professionals urgently call for people to vaccinate amidst Measles outbreak

POCATELLO, Idaho (KIFI)– The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) report 222 measles cases across 12 states as of March 6, and local public health providers are urging people to check their vaccination records and get up to date on immunizations.

According to Ian Troesoyer, nurse practitioner with Southeastern Idaho Public Health (SIPH), measles is highly contagious and requires higher vaccination rates than other diseases to stop the illness from spreading.

"You need 95% of vulnerable people to be vaccinated in order to effectively contain the virus, which is just a really high threshold to try to clear for any vaccination program," said Troesoyer. "...if you think about trying to vaccinate 95% of people, it's difficult–so is Idaho potentially vulnerable to a measles outbreak? Yes. Just because of how contagious measles is."

Troesoyer said measles can be a devastating disease and potentially lead to long-term health effects like hearing loss, brain damage, and a weakened immune system, which increases the risk of death by other diseases like pneumonia.

As measles cases rise across the nation, public health professionals are asking people to check immunization records and make sure children and un-vaccinated adults are up to date on the measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine.

"It's a very effective vaccine," said Troesoyer. "Low risk, way lower risk than measles–and unfortunately, we're in the position where we actually have to worry about people getting infected with it."

For more information on accessing immunization records and the MMR vaccine, you can visit the Southeastern Idaho Public Health website.