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The Maryland Department of Health said the two cases involved people residing in the same home and that there was no evidence that the virus was transmitted in Maryland.
The state of Maryland announced Wednesday that two measles cases had been confirmed among residents this month.
According to the Maryland Department of Health, the second case concerns a person who has had family contact with the first case and there is no evidence that the virus is spreading in Maryland. However, Baltimore's Jewish community is given special attention because it offers advice to families on what to do if you fear that you or your virus have contracted the virus.
In the United States, the number of measles cases is around 600, exceeding the number of measles cases reported last year.
"The situation is getting worse and worse," said Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases at the National Institutes of Health.
"This is almost entirely related to the fact that some communities are really under-vaccinated and do not vaccinate their children. So it is possible that when a person arrives from another country or visit another country, it gets infected and here, then you end up with an epidemic. "
Fauci admits that there are some valid reasons why a child would not be vaccinated, but believes that these exemptions should be limited to those who have valid medical concerns.
"Most of the other situations in which they try to exonerate are really philosophical," said Fauci.
"Many of these reasons are totally devoid of valid data," he added, pointing out that concerns about a link between vaccination and autism had "been thoroughly debunked, thoroughly, repeatedly" .
Fauci explained that "herd immunity" is why the virus was eradicated in the United States before it came back in force in recent years, and the fact that some communities are failing to keep pace with it. allows to spread.
"When the protection in the community becomes less than a certain percentage of people vaccinated – and for measles, it is between 93 and 95% – when this level of protection is achieved somewhere, as in the 80s or even in the 70s where we're By seeing parts of New York City, when you get measles in the community, you see the type of epidemic, "Fauci said.
He says that when measles is transported to a place where there is "collective immunity" against measles, "the virus does not have a place to go".
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