'Highly Contagious' Measles Warning Sparks Questions

Virginia's warning on Saturday to travelers that they may have been exposed to "highly contagious" measles has sparked concern across social media.

The Virginia Public Health Department (VDH) announced Saturday it was aware of a person with a confirmed case of measles who recently traveled through northern Virginia when returning from international travel. Out of caution, health officials are working to identify anyone who may have been exposed.

According to VDH and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), measles is a "highly contagious illness that can spread easily through the air when an infected person breathes, coughs, or sneezes." Symptoms usually appear within one to two weeks after infection and can include a fever, cough, runny nose, rash, and red, watery eyes or pink eye. Anyone who has not already had the measles or gotten the vaccine can become infected.

The potential exposure has been linked to the international arrivals area of the main terminal at Dulles International Airport in Dulles, Virginia, from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. January 3, and at Terminal A of Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport in Arlington, Virginia, from 2:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. January 4, the VDH said.

News of the potential spread of the illness has circulated across social media, sparking new questions and concerns on Tuesday.

Newsweek reached out to VDH, along with the Dulles and Reagan airports via email for comment on Tuesday.

Some have taken to X, formerly Twitter, to share thoughts on the warning.

Abraham Gutman, health reporter for The Philadelphia Inquirer, noted the news on X, adding that measles was "eliminated" in 2000: "Having a 'measles' google news alert is wild. Over the past week, there have been reports of new measles case in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Virginia, Washington, and Missouri. Reminder: US 'eliminated' measles in 2000. Yikes."

In 2000, the CDC announced the demise of measles in the U.S., saying the viral infection was no longer consistently present in the country.

However, the agency warned, travelers could continue to transmit measles into the United States, adding that it can sometimes spread and cause outbreaks among the unvaccinated.

Missouri Secretary of State Valentina Gomez also reacted to the news, saying, "And just in time for election season."

All information about the infected international traveler remains unknown.

X user Atlanta Conservative wrote, "I wonder how highly contagious measles arrived at Dulles and Reagan airports. Oh, how I wonder."

Charlie Kirk, conservative podcast host and founder of Turning Point USA, said: "Travelers at Dulles and Reagan airports may have been exposed to a highly contagious measles virus linked to an international traveler on Jan 3rd. The virus stays in the air for 2 hrs. Travelers should look for symptoms through next week. Was the traveler illegal?"

Others, however, emphasized the vaccine for the illness. According to VDH, measles is preventable through a safe and effective MMR vaccine, as two doses are given to provide lifetime protection. The agency also noted Virginia has high measles vaccination rates, with approximately 95 percent of kindergartners fully vaccinated against measles.

X user Carolina said, "Let's see if those measles vaccines work, right?"

Virginia's measles case is only the latest regarding the illness in the last month.

New Jersey health officials also confirmed over the weekend that a Camden County resident had the measles, saying they were working on contact-tracing to locate the source of the infection.

The infected party visited two health care facilities in Camden County: Cooper University Healthcare Pediatrics on January 5 and Jefferson South Jersey Stratford Hospital on January 8.