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Tag: measles

Topic: measlesView all posts for the topic: measles

Ontario sees another sharp rise in measles cases while outbreaks grow in Quebec, Alberta

Published March 20, 2025

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Published by: CTV News / The Canadian Press
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By Hannah Alberga

There’s been another sharp increase in Ontario measles cases as the province begins to release weekly reports on the infectious disease.

Public Health Ontario is reporting 470 measles cases since an outbreak began in October. That’s an increase of 120 cases since March 14.

The spread resulted in 34 hospitalizations, including two people who needed intensive care. Most of those hospitalized were unvaccinated kids, including one of the intensive care patients.

The outbreak expansion adds to the growing concern of rising measles cases in different parts of the country, including in Quebec where there are 40 cases and Alberta where there are 13, according to the latest data.

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BC’s Measles Vaccination Rate Is Lower Than in Gaines County, TexasColourized transmission electron micrograph of a measles virus particle (red), with a yellow background. Photo: CDC and NIAID. Licensed under Creative Commons CC BY 2.0 DEED Attribution 2.0 Generic license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/
Topic: British ColumbiaView all posts for the topic: British Columbia

BC’s Measles Vaccination Rate Is Lower Than in Gaines County, Texas

Published March 14, 2025

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Published by: The Tyee
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By Michelle Gamage

In Gaines County, Texas, where a measles outbreak has killed one six-year-old and one adult, the measles vaccination rate among kindergarteners is just 82 per cent, according to reporting by The Atlantic.

That’s a higher measles vaccination rate than children have here in B.C.

Just under 82 per cent of two-year-olds have gotten one dose of the measles, mumps and rubella, or MMR, vaccine, and around 72 per cent of seven-year-olds have gotten both doses, according to the B.C. Childhood Immunization Coverage Dashboard’s 2023 data, which is the most recent data year available.

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Topic: measlesView all posts for the topic: measles

The measles epidemic continues in Quebec with 30 confirmed cases now

Published March 3, 2025

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Published by: Le Devoir / The Canadian Press
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By Katrine Desautels

The measles epidemic continues in Quebec. The province has reached 30 cases, according to the most recent figures from Public Health.

The Laurentides region remains the most affected with 27 cases of measles, the others being in the territories of Montreal, Laval and Montérégie.

Continue readingThe measles epidemic continues in Quebec with 30 confirmed cases now
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Topic: measlesView all posts for the topic: measles

Measles cases in Ontario have nearly doubled over the last 2 weeks

Published February 27, 2025

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Published by: Global News / The Canadian Press
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By Hannah Alberga

This is a corrected story. A previous version from The Canadian Press erroneously reported that there were 84 new measles cases reported in Ontario over the last two weeks when in fact there were 78.

Ontario is reporting 78 new measles cases over the last two weeks, nearly doubling the province’s total count since an outbreak started in the autumn.

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Topic: TexasView all posts for the topic: Texas

A Texas child who was not vaccinated has died of measles, a first for the US in a decade

Published February 26, 2025

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Published by: The Associated Press
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By Devi Shastri, Amanda Seitz

LUBBOCK, Texas (AP) — A child who wasn’t vaccinated died in a measles outbreak in rural West Texas, state officials said Wednesday, the first U.S. death from the highly contagious — but preventable — respiratory disease since 2015.

The school-aged child had been hospitalized and died Tuesday night amid the widespread outbreak, Texas’ largest in nearly 30 years. Since it began last month, a rash of 124 cases has erupted across nine counties.

The Texas Department of State Health Services and Lubbock health officials confirmed the death to The Associated Press. The child wasn’t identified but was treated at Covenant Children’s Hospital in Lubbock, though the facility noted the patient didn’t live in Lubbock County.

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Four more measles cases confirmed in Norfolk County and Brant CountyColourized transmission electron micrograph of a measles virus particle (gold), with a purple background. Photo: CDC and NIAID. Licensed under Creative Commons CC BY 2.0 DEED Attribution 2.0 Generic license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/
Topic: OntarioView all posts for the topic: Ontario

Four more measles cases confirmed in Norfolk County and Brant County

Published February 20, 2025

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Published by: CTV News
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By Shelby Knox

The Grand Erie Public Health Unit is investigating four new cases of measles.

In a news release on Thursday, the health unit said the latest cases were identified in Norfolk County and Brant County.

Two of the recently ill people are recovering in hospital while the other two are at home.

Thursday’s update brings the total number of confirmed illnesses to 57, nine of which have occurred among adults and 48 within children.

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Topic: British ColumbiaView all posts for the topic: British Columbia

Additional measles case detected in B.C.‘s Lower Mainland: officials

Published February 19, 2025

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Published by: CTV News
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By Lisa Steacy

A second case of measles linked to a group that travelled to Southeast Asia has been identified in B.C.’s Lower Mainland, according to health officials.

The infected person lives in the Vancouver Coastal Health region and was on Air Canada Flight 66, which arrived at YVR on Feb. 11, said a statement from the health authority on Wednesday. The person was travelling in the same “party” as a Fraser Health region resident in whom measles was detected over the weekend.

People who were on the flight or who were in the international arrivals area of Vancouver’s airport between 7 and 9:30 a.m. on Feb. 11 may have been exposed, the notification from health officials said.

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Topic: Hamilton RegionView all posts for the topic: Hamilton Region

Confirmed case of measles in Hamilton area child: public health

Published February 14, 2025

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Published by: CTV News
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By Laura Sebben

The City of Hamilton says it is investigating a confirmed case of measles.

Hamilton Public Health (HPH) says the confirmed case is tied to a Hamilton area child and they are investigating several local exposures.

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Topic: OntarioView all posts for the topic: Ontario

11 new measles cases confirmed: Grand Erie Public Health

Published February 13, 2025

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Published by: Brantford Expositor
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By Susan Gamble

Another 11 cases of measles have been confirmed by Grand Erie Public Health, bringing the total cases to 48 in the Brantford/Brant, Haldimand/Norfolk area.

One person is recovering in hospital, according to a news release, and the health unit is busy trying to contact those who may have been exposed to that person but the infection source is “unknown at this time.”

The cases involve 42 children and six adults. There are another 19 cases known in the Southwestern Public Health area.

A spokesperson for the Grand Erie health agency said all but one of the cases is from the Haldimand-Norfolk area, with just one case in Brantford-Brant.

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Topic: Waterloo RegionView all posts for the topic: Waterloo Region

People need to ‘remain vigilant’ as measles cases rise, Waterloo region’s medical officer says

Published January 31, 2025

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Published by: CBC News
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By Kate Bueckert

While international travel was the initial source of these outbreaks, all the people with recent measles infections were exposed to the virus in Canada.

The majority of measles cases reported in Canada occur among unvaccinated people, many of whom are children and include infants under the age of one who are more vulnerable and have not yet had the opportunity to be vaccinated… that is why we need to remain vigilant and I recommend that we keep up-to-date with the recommended vaccinations.

— Dr. Hsiu-Li Wang, Medical Officer of Health for Waterloo Region
Continue readingPeople need to ‘remain vigilant’ as measles cases rise, Waterloo region’s medical officer says
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Topic: OntarioView all posts for the topic: Ontario

Measles outbreak declared in southwestern Ontario

Published January 29, 2025

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Published by: CTV News
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By Jennifer K. Baker

Public health officials said they are now dealing with a measles outbreak in southwestern Ontario, with 19 confirmed cases as of Jan. 29.

Southwestern Public Health, which covers Oxford County, Elgin County and the City of St. Thomas, is reporting three cases of the highly contagious disease in children.

The remaining 16 infections are with Grand Erie Public Health, which serves the City of Brantford, Brant County, Haldimand County and Norfolk County. In an update Friday, officials said thirteen children and three adults have measles.

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Topic: OntarioView all posts for the topic: Ontario

10 confirmed measles cases in southern Ontario

Published January 23, 2025

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Published by: CTV News
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By Jennifer K. Baker, Krista Sharpe

Confirmed cases of measles have now been reported at two public health units in southern Ontario.

Grand Erie Public Health said nine people have the highly contagious virus.

Of those, three are children and the remaining six are adults.

Only one of those cases is in Brantford-Brant, while the other eight are in Haldimand County and Norfolk County.

Southwestern Public Health, which covers Oxford County, Elgin County and St. Thomas, confirmed Thursday they have one active case. Officials believe it is likely connected to those reported by Grand Erie Public Health.

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Topic: measlesView all posts for the topic: measles

Quebec calls for vigilance following 11th case of measles

Published January 12, 2025

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Published by: Radio-Canada / The Canadian Press
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An eleventh case of measles has been reported in Quebec, the Ministère de la Santé et des Services sociaux (MSSS) announced on Sunday.

The government is urging the public to be extra cautious and to follow public health recommendations “due to the active circulation of measles in Quebec and the presence of several exposure sites in the Laurentides, Laval, Montréal and Montérégie regions,” the MSSS said in a press release.

The last infected person visited the Carrefour Laval during his/her contagious period on January 7.

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Topic: MontrealView all posts for the topic: Montreal

Locations exposed to measles in Montreal due to the appearance of a new case

Published January 6, 2025

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Published by: Radio-Canada
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Another case of measles has been detected in recent days by the Direction de la santé publique de Montréal, which is reminding hospital staff to apply the necessary measures to avoid transmission of this serious respiratory disease.

In a notice published on Sunday, the Direction régionale de santé publique revealed that “a Montréal adult was infected with measles following exposure to another unvaccinated adult with measles, in a location outside Montréal.”

Public Health states that these two cases are part of “the measles chain of transmission initiated by the case imported from a foreign country who attended the NATO Parliamentary Assembly at the Palais des congrès de Montréal in November.”

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Topic: vaccinesView all posts for the topic: vaccines

Why We Vaccinate

Published December 24, 2024

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Published by: The Tyee
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By Michelle Gamage

There’s a concerning trend emerging in Canada and the United States when it comes to vaccine hesitancy.

In the United States, a key legal adviser to Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the man tapped to be the next U.S. health secretary, is working to get rid of polio and hepatitis B vaccines in America, according to the New York Times. Kennedy himself has vocally opposed vaccines for years.

And here in Canada the overall childhood vaccination rate is declining, said Dr. Jason Wong, chief medical officer at the BC Centre for Disease Control. Wong is the deputy provincial health officer and a clinical associate professor in the University of British Columbia school of population and public health.

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Topic: OntarioView all posts for the topic: Ontario

Dropping vaccination rates for children in Ontario raise measles fears

Published December 22, 2024

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Published by: Ottawa Citizen
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By Elizabeth Payne

Just 70 per cent of seven year olds in Ontario were fully vaccinated against measles last year, according to Public Health Ontario.

That represents a steep drop in vaccination coverage compared to before the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the data. There have been similar declines for other routine childhood vaccines as well.

A decade ago, during the 2013-14 school year, 94 per cent of seven year olds in Ontario were fully immunized against measles. That number has steadily declined since then. Herd immunity for measles, which is among the most contagious infections in the world, is between 90 and 95 per cent.

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Topic: measlesView all posts for the topic: measles

Hundreds may have been exposed to measles during November NATO conference in Montreal

Published December 6, 2024

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Published by: Montreal Gazette
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Montreal Public Health says hundreds of people may have been exposed to measles during a recent NATO conference in the city.

The agency says one of the participants in the military alliance’s parliamentary assembly, which took place in Montreal last month, received a measles diagnosis after returning to their home country and would have been contagious while they were in the city.

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Topic: Ottawa-GatineauView all posts for the topic: Ottawa-Gatineau

Ottawa Public Health seeking ways to continue wastewater testing

Published June 21, 2024

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Published by: CBC News
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By Nathan Fung

Ottawa Public Health wants to collaborate with local partners to look for ways to continue wastewater monitoring after the province cuts funding to the program next month.

At its meeting this week, the city’s board of health passed a motion directing Medical Officer of Health Dr. Vera Etches to write to provincial and federal partners to find ways to continue the wastewater testing work that’s being done at the University of Ottawa.

Earlier this month, Ontario announced that by the end of July, it will scrap the program for sampling wastewater to monitor levels of COVID-19 in the population. The program began in 2020 and is funded through the Ministry of Environment, Conservation and Parks.

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