By Cam Lee

Measles

Province urges measles vaccinations

Feb 7, 2019 | 5:01 PM

While there has been only one reported case of measles in Canada this year, various outbreaks in the US through January and potential dangers associated with foreign travel to Europe, are a timely reminder of the need for vaccination against the highly contagious virus.

Representatives from Saskatchewan’s Ministry of Health declined to do a recorded interview with northeastNOW about measles, but they did send a reply via email.

The Ministry said in the email “[m]easles is a highly infectious disease. High vaccination rates are important to prevent outbreaks.”

They said anyone in Saskatchewan born after 1970 should have 2 doses of a measles-containing vaccine.

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According to the Ministry, the province rarely sees cases of measles, and “those we do see are usually linked to international travel. A high immunization rate prevents these cases from becoming outbreaks.”

You can see a summary of Saskatchewan’s immunization rates here.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in the U.S. has reported from January 1 to 31, 2019, 79 individual cases of measles had been confirmed in 10 states, including California, Colorado, Connecticut, Georgia, Illinois, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Texas, and Washington. Reports in US media indicate several people who contracted measles had not been immunized.

There were 372 cases reported in the U.S. in 2018.

Meanwhile, the Canadian Press reports that some travellers through Toronto’s Pearson International Airport in January may have been exposed to measles.

Public health authorities say people in Terminal 1 on Sunday Jan. 27 from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. may be at risk.

Those who were near people arriving aboard Lufthansa flight LH-470 from Frankfurt at 4:08 p.m. may also have been exposed, while those connected to Air Canada flight AC-834 or LH-6829 that left Toronto at 6 p.m. for Montreal may also be at risk.

The government of Canada health website noted globally, there are large measles outbreaks reported across Europe which have affected a large number of countries. Canadians travelling to Europe and Venezuela are invited to consult the travel health notices for more information.

With files from Glenn Hicks – paNOW

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cam.lee@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @cam