Washington - Saba:
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced that the number of measles cases in the country has surpassed 1,000, with three deaths.
The CDC said in a statement that "a total of 1,001 confirmed cases of measles have been recorded," noting that the cases have spread across 30 US states.
ABC News reported on April 20, citing the US Department of Health, that dozens of measles cases had been recorded in 27 states, with the total number of confirmed cases at the time reaching 800.
In a related development, two unvaccinated elementary school children died in an outbreak in West Texas, and an unvaccinated adult died in New Mexico from a measles-related illness.
Several US states are currently experiencing active outbreaks of the disease (three or more cases), including Indiana, Kansas, Michigan, Montana, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Tennessee.
Across the continent, North America is experiencing two additional outbreaks. The first is in Ontario, Canada, where 1,020 cases were reported from mid-October to April 30. The second is in Chihuahua, Mexico, where 605 cases were recorded as of April 25, according to data from the state's Department of Health.
The World Health Organization has indicated that the cases in Mexico are linked to the outbreak in Texas.
Measles is a highly contagious viral disease that is easily transmitted through the air through breathing, sneezing, or coughing, and can be prevented with vaccines. According to the Chicago Tribune, the United States had declared the disease domestically eradicated in 2000.
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