3 measles cases confirmed in Oregon; OHA on alert for more

PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — Two people in Clackamas County are confirmed to have measles and another case was confirmed in Marion County Monday as Oregon health officials said there may be more cases.

In Clackamas County, an unvaccinated adult was confirmed to have measles after a rash began developing on June 11, the Oregon Health Authority said. A few days later, an unvaccinated child in the same household also developed symptoms.

Early Monday evening, the Marion County Health and Human Services Department posted about their confirmed case. Two Marion County healthcare facilities were identified as potential exposure sites during case investigation and our team is working with both facilities.

The timeline leads OHA officials to believe the measles exposure happened sometime between May 19 and June 4 in Marion County.

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“Spreading measles from one person to another is pretty easy, as it’s a highly infectious disease,” said Paul R. Cieslak, M.D., medical director for communicable diseases and immunizations at OHA’s Public Health Division. “That’s why it’s extremely important that all adults and children in their household be up to date on vaccinations.”

OHA officials say measles was declared irradicated in the US in 2000, but there have been occasional cases, including an outbreak of 28 reported cases in 2019. While there weren’t any reported cases from 2020-2022, Cieslak says cases are on the uptick.

“Well, unfortunately, it’s not unexpected,” Cieslak said. “If you were counting on measles not being around, well, it’s here now.”

Anyone who was at the OHSU Immediate Care Richmond Clinic between 4:40 p.m. and 5:40 p.m. on June 12 or at the OHSU Hospital Emergency Department after 6 p.m. on June 12 or 7:15 p.m. on June 14 may have been exposed during that time.

Measles is spread through the air through coughs or sneezes and OHA said that the virus can linger in the air for up to two hours.

The virus starts with a fever, cough, runny nose and red eyes and will usually be followed by a rash beginning on the face and spreading. Typically symptoms begin seven to 21 days after exposure.

People who are vaccinated have a low risk of getting measles, and the virus poses the most risk to unvaccinated pregnant people, infants under a year old and people with weakened immune systems.

“Hundreds of millions of doses are given in the United States. It’s a very, very safe, tried-and-true vaccine that’s been around for nearly 60 years,” Cieslak said.

OHA recommends anyone planning to seek medical care should contact their health care provider by phone to create an entry plan to avoid exposure.

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