The Catskill Chronicle

SULLIVAN COUNTY, NY (February 27, 2015) — Today, Sullivan County Public Health Services was notified of a laboratory-negative result of a specimen sent to the state lab yesterday to rule out measles.

In 2000, the United States declared that measles was eliminated from this country. Since then, however, the annual number of cases in the U.S. has increased from a low of 37 in 2004 to a high of 644 in 2014. The majority of cases have been among people who are NOT vaccinated against measles.

Measles is highly contagious. The measles virus lives in the mucus in the nose and throat of infected people. When they sneeze, cough or talk, droplets spray into the air and the droplets remain active and contagious on infected surfaces for up to two hours.

The single best way to prevent measles is to be vaccinated. Most people in New York have been vaccinated, but if unsure, should check with their physician. Individuals should receive two (2) doses of MMR vaccine to be protected.

Sullivan County Public Health offers immunization clinics the first Wednesday of every month from 4 pm to 7 pm or by appointment at the Shared Clinic Facility at 50 Community Lane, Liberty, NY.

For more information, visit the New York State Health Department’s website http://www.health.ny.gov/diseases/#m , or http://www.cdc.gov/measles, or call the Communicable Disease Control staff at Sullivan County Public Health at 845-292-5910.