Two Utah County kids came home from a recent Disneyland trip with an unwanted souvenir, measles. The two Utah cases are part of a larger outbreak being investigated in California, where officials have confirmed seven cases and three suspect cases contracted during the same time period between Dec. 15 and Dec. 20 at the Disney theme parks.
Symptoms of measles include fever, cough, runny nose and a rash that spreads all over the body within two weeks of exposure. The virus is transmitted via coughing or sneezing and is so contagious that 90 percent of people in close contact with an infectious person will get the disease if they’re not immunized.
Vaccines for measles, pertussis and influenza not only protect the individual who receives them, but helps to build community immunity, health officials said. For more information on immunizations, visit www.immunize-utah.org.
Long story short, VACCINATE!!!