OAKLAND COUNTY, Mich. – There are at least 8 confirmed cases of people contracting measles.
UPDATE: Health officials now confirm 18 cases of measles in Oakland County
A traveler from Israel is believed to have possibly exposed 18 locations in Oakland County to the virus between March 14 through 21.
Dr. Rudolph Valentini with Children’s Hospital of Michigan said "better safe than sorry" is a motto the hospital practices, especially when it comes to measles.
“Measles is a very highly contagious disease,” Valentini said.
Recently, there have been several measles cases in the country. There have been multiple incidents here in Metro Detroit.
So far, for the first quarter of 2019, there have been a handful of cases reported in Michigan. The CDC had only 11 states identified through the first two months of 2019. Were now up to 15 states where measles have been reported.
Valentini said there’s a reason for the outbreak.
“In order to eradicate measles, we need to have 95% of the population vaccinated,” Valentini said.
Meanwhile, the Children’s Hospital of Michigan has routines and safety measures in place, just in case someone affected with the disease shows up.
“We would put them in a mask. We would wear a mask, put them in a mask and put them in an isolation room and minimize contact,” said Valentini.