South Carolina measles outbreak: South Carolina health officials reported a sharp jump in measles cases, confirming 99 new infections over the past three days and pushing the state’s total to 310.
The outbreak is centred in Spartanburg County and has led to cases in North Carolina and Ohio among families who travelled to the affected area in the northwestern part of the state during the holiday period.
State health authorities said the surge was anticipated following holiday travel and family gatherings during the school break. Officials cited an expanding list of public exposure sites and low vaccination rates in parts of the region as major factors fueling transmission.
Also Read | US drops universal recommendation for four childhood vaccines
As of Friday, 200 people were in quarantine, and nine were in isolation, according to state health department data. Officials cautioned that the quarantine figure does not capture everyone who may have been exposed.
“The number of those in quarantine does not reflect the number actually exposed,” said Dr Linda Bell, who leads the state’s outbreak response. She added that more public exposure locations are being identified and that “likely hundreds more people” may have been exposed without realising they should quarantine if they are not immune.
The outbreak began in October, and Bell has previously warned that measles may have been spreading undetected in the area. Hundreds of schoolchildren have been quarantined, in some cases more than once, as officials worked to limit further spread.
South Carolina is currently one of two active measles hot spots in the United States. The other is on the Arizona–Utah border, where 337 cases have been reported since August.
The spike comes after a year in which the United States recorded its highest measles total in decades. Federal data show 2,144 cases were confirmed across 44 states last year. Public health experts have warned that ongoing outbreaks could put the country’s measles elimination status at risk if sustained local transmission continues.