The measles outbreak at Palmetto Senior High School is still confined to one student, according to the Florida Department of Health and Miami-Dade County Public Schools. NBC6’s Ari Odzer reports
The measles outbreak at Palmetto Senior High School is still confined to one student, according to the Florida Department of Health and Miami-Dade County Public Schools.
The state’s surgeon general revealed the student is a girl, but we don’t know her name or her age. On Thursday afternoon, Superintendent Dr. Jose Dotres spoke about the outbreak for the first time.
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WATCH HERE“We are confident that in working with the Department of Health, we are taking every step possible,” Dotres said, adding that the University of Miami’s mobile vaccine unit is planning to go to the school.
“They are going to be providing vaccines in that community in the event that there are any students that may need the MMR, the vaccine rate at Palmetto is 99.7%,” Dotres added.
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Dr. Joseph Ladapo, Florida’s Surgeon General, discussed the situation at a news conference and stopped short of urging parents to get their kids the measles, mumps, and rubella vaccine.
“We also have measles vaccines available in that part of the state for any parents who want them, that option is there also,” Dr. Ladapo said.
Dr. Payal Shah, assistant professor of pediatrics at the University of Miami’s Miller School of Medicine, says the anti-vax movement has caused Florida to lose herd immunity against measles.
“I would say that is really the number one reason, we find that parents are more and more hesitant to get primary routine vaccines,” Dr. Shah said.
Ladapo endorses an approach recommended by the Secretary of Health and Human Services, who is not a scientist or a doctor.
“My friend Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is taking some heat for making a recommendation around vitamin A, but that’s completely a good idea for anyone who is severely ill from measles,” Ladapo said.
“We do not have a treatment for measles,” Dr. Shah said, reflecting the mainstream medical community consensus. “So I think it’s very important for us to combat misinformation, encourage vaccination and really reassure parents and families that the vaccine is safe.”
Dr. Shah points out that despite persistent rumors, the MMR vaccine does not cause autism. Her own children have received the shots, and the pediatric community is united on the importance of everyone being vaccinated to protect each other.
“As a plea, I say trust us, we have no other stake in the game except keeping our children safe,” Dr. Shah said.
Dr. Shah said she’s getting a lot of questions from parents about how to protect babies under 12 months, typically too young to receive the MMR shots. She says sometimes, pediatricians will vaccinate babies who are at least six months old if they live in an outbreak area, and if the parents don’t want to wait until the child is a year old.
Dr. Shah also reminds parents that it’s crucial to get the second dose of the MMR at age four to provide lifelong, 97% immunity.
