95.3 / 88.5 FM Grand Rapids and 95.3 FM Muskegon
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Five new measles cases in Osceola County

Characteristic rash associated with measles.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
Characteristic rash associated with measles.

Health officials declare outbreak.

Outbreaks are generally three or more related cases, and this brings Osceola County to a total of seven cases.

The outbreak has been traced back to people who were infected while traveling out of state in June, according to health officials.

They're not sharing many details, citing privacy concerns, and while no public exposure sites have been identified yet, that may change as officials learn more.

The local medical director says the outbreak is within a community that is - quote - “closed,” and is "taking measures to isolate and self-quarantine.”

Kate Wells is a Peabody Award-winning journalist and co-host of the Michigan Radio and NPR podcast Believed. The series was widely ranked among the best of the year, drawing millions of downloads and numerous awards. She and co-host Lindsey Smith received the prestigious Livingston Award for Young Journalists. Judges described their work as "a haunting and multifaceted account of U.S.A. Gymnastics doctor Larry Nassar’s belated arrest and an intimate look at how an army of women – a detective, a prosecutor and survivors – brought down the serial sex offender."