Measles Cases Grow But Still None In Yakima
Yakima health officials continue to monitor a measles outbreak in Clark County that continues to grow. Yakima Health District Director of Disease control Melissa Sixberry says so far so good no cases of measles in Yakima County while the cases in Clark County have now grown to 70 with more cases possible.
Sixberry and other health professionals say Yakima County has a high vaccination rate close to 90 percent. And they say all the talk about measles over the last two months has reminded parents of the importance of checking vaccination records to make kids are protected against the highly contagious virus called measles. Health professionals say the final outcome of the outbreak may be that more people are protected against measles in Washington State than ever before. Most are young children under age 10 who were not vaccinated. Clark County Public Health Officer Dr. Alan Melnick says 21 days without a new case must pass before the outbreak could be considered over.