"With the 3-month-old outbreak now doubled in just a week, health officials are renewing calls for people to get vaccinated against the highly infectious virus-an effort that has met with little success since October. Still, the health department is activating its mobile health unit to offer free measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccinations, as well as flu vaccinations at two locations today and Thursday in the Spartanburg area, the epicenter of the outbreak."
"Officials are also warning that they're losing the ability to trace cases, and exposures are continuing. Last Friday, someone contagious with measles was in the South Carolina State Museum in Columbia between 1 pm and 5 pm ET. Anyone in the museum during that time and unvaccinated is at risk of contracting the infection. The virus spreads through the air and can linger in a room's airspace for up to two hours after an infected person has left."
An outbreak of measles in South Carolina began in October and has doubled in one week to 434 confirmed cases, with 409 people currently under quarantine. Recent updates recorded increases of 124 and 99 cases over successive reporting periods, and an earlier rise of 26 cases brought the total to 211 on January 6. Health authorities are urging vaccination and activating a mobile health unit to offer free MMR and flu shots at two Spartanburg-area locations today and Thursday. Contact tracing capacity is declining as exposures continue; a contagious individual visited the state museum, and measles can linger in air for up to two hours and infect most unvaccinated contacts.
Read at Ars Technica
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