LANSING – An uptick in measles cases in metro-Detroit highlights a reality public health workers have recognized for a long time: When fewer Americans get vaccinated, preventable diseases are more likely to take hold in our communities.
There are no cases of measles in the Lansing area as of Monday afternoon, but the 18 confirmed cases in Oakland County and outbreaks across the U.S. still should concern area residents, Ingham County Health Officer Linda Vail said.
“We travel, we get on planes, we go places,” she said. “It can come from the county next to you or it can come from all the way across the country. You just never know.”
The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services added 18 places to a list of locations where someone could have been exposed to measles in Oakland County. That list includes medical centers, drug and hardware stores, religious facilities, a car wash, a restaurant and more.
The best way to prevent the disease from taking hold is simple, Vail said: Get vaccinated..
“Vaccines are safe; vaccines are effective; vaccine-preventable diseases can be just like they say, prevented,” she said. “When not prevented they can be very, very devastating in the lives of those people who get those diseases.”
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