The warning comes ahead of the busy spring and summer travel season. Many countries, including Austria, Philippines, Romania and the United Kingdom are experiencing measles outbreaks, the CDC said.
US health officials are warning doctors about the dramatic rise in measles cases around the world, and advising families traveling to a measles-affected country to get babies as young as 6 months vaccinated before they go.
Even so, vaccination rates against measles in the U.S. are "pretty strong," said Dr. Nirav Shah, CDC's principal deputy director, so this isn't a situation like Covid, where everyone is susceptible. "The overwhelming scientific evidence shows that vaccines remain among the most effective and safest intervention to both prevent individual illness and protect the health of the public," said Dr. Jesse Ehrenfeld, president of the American Medical Association, said in an emailed statement.
Measles virus can linger in the air for two hours after an infected person has passed through a room. People can also become infected if they touch a surface with virus particles, then touch their eyes, nose, or mouth. People can spread measles up to four days before and four days after they develop the characteristic rash.
The US has officially eliminated measles as an endemic infection, but the nation still sees imported cases every year. These cases are usually unvaccinated US residents who become infected during international travel.
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