US builds case to retain measles elimination status as infections mount
CNN••general
Key Points:
- U.S. officials are working to demonstrate that current measles outbreaks in South Carolina and other states are unrelated to last year’s major Texas outbreak to maintain the country's measles elimination status, which requires no local transmission of the same strain for 12 months.
- Genetic and epidemiological analyses, including advanced virus genome sequencing by the CDC and state labs, suggest that outbreaks in Utah and South Carolina are genetically distinct from the Texas outbreak, indicating separate sources of infection.
- Despite no direct epidemiological links found between outbreaks, some experts caution that gaps in case reporting and community mistrust of public health authorities may obscure connections, complicating definitive conclusions.
- The Pan American Health Organization will evaluate U.S. measles data this year to decide if the country
