New York state declares state of disaster emergency due to measles outbreak

China News Service, New York, October 5 (Reporter Wang Fan) New York State Governor Cathy Hochul signed an executive order on the 5th local time, declaring that the state has entered a state of disaster emergency for a period of one month due to the measles epidemic.

Hochul issued a statement that day, saying that in view of the increasing number of confirmed measles cases in New York State and neighboring states, New York State has entered a state of disaster emergency with immediate effect. This move will help strengthen the epidemic response, including deploying more medical staff, speeding up vaccination and necessary testing. “No one should get seriously ill or die from a vaccine-preventable disease.”

According to data from the New York State Health Department, as of October 3, New York State has reported a total of 108 confirmed measles cases this year, including 7 cases in New York City and 101 cases outside New York City. Most cases were recorded after mid-July.

The executive order takes effect as the United States faces one of its worst measles outbreaks in decades. Data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows that as of October 1, a total of 3,887 confirmed measles cases have been reported in the United States this year, the highest level for the same period since 1991. Currently, most of the confirmed cases in the United States are concentrated in Pennsylvania. Data released by the state's health department on October 5 show that since the beginning of this year, the state has reported 1,004 confirmed measles cases, including 5 deaths.

The Associated Press quoted health experts as saying that such outbreaks are related to low vaccination rates. The United States has not seen a measles epidemic with more than 1,000 confirmed cases in decades. In recent years, due to factors such as the choice of some parents not to vaccinate, limited access to health care services, and the spread of false information, routine vaccination rates have declined, and the measles vaccination rate in the United States has fallen below the 95% coverage required to prevent outbreaks. (over)