Florida Measles Outbreak Grows as New Case Reported

Six people have been diagnosed with measles in Broward County, Florida, as of Tuesday in an ongoing outbreak of the disease at an elementary school.

The outbreak appears to have emerged rapidly—with health officials telling local health care providers that a third grader with no history of travel had tested positive on Friday, February 16—and centers around Manatee Bay Elementary School in Weston.

Since then, five other cases linked to the school have been recorded, with the latest being discovered on Tuesday evening, the Florida Department of Health confirmed to Newsweek.

Measles is a highly contagious disease caused by a virus that spreads through an infected person's breath, coughs or sneezes. Symptoms tend to include a cold-like illness and a rash of tiny red spots, but it can cause complications and, in some cases, lead to death.

In a statement on Sunday, the Florida Department of Health in Broward County, which sits just north of Miami, said it was "continuously working with all partners, including Broward County Public Schools and local hospitals, to identify contacts that are at risk of transmission."

Newsweek approached Broward County Public Schools via email for comment on Wednesday.

A spokesperson for the school district told NBC News that it had taken "further preventive measures" to avoid further infections in the school, including a deep clean of the premises and replacing air filters. Superintendent Peter Licata was quoted as saying attending the school was "safe if your child is vaccinated" by Local 10 News during a visit to the school on Tuesday.

However, Florida Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo deferred to parents as to whether to let their children attend school, citing the "high immunity rate in the community, as well as the burden on families and educational cost of healthy children missing school," a decision which has attracted criticism from some public health experts.

Richard M. Carpiano, a health scientist at the University of California's School of Public Policy wrote on X, formerly Twitter, that the guidance was "deeply irresponsible," adding that it "notes 'high likelihood of infection' for unvaxxed kids but leaves it to parents to decide what to do. Reminder: ~1 in 5 who get measles will be hospitalized."

The vaccination rate for measles is around 91 percent for the state, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Local 10 News reported that around 20 percent of students were absent from class on Tuesday. One parent, Stacey Zannini, told CBS News that while she had concerns, "I double-checked right away to actually make sure they had both of their doses when they were little just to make sure I had that peace of mind."

The local outbreak comes amid a spate of infections across a number of states this year. According to the latest update by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, as of February 15 there were a total of 20 cases across 11 states.

The cases in Florida are the first the state has experienced in 2024, and are not included in this tally.

Update 2/22/24, 5:00 a.m. ET: This article was updated to include a response from the Florida Department of Health.