The Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention on Wednesday reported a new case of measles, the first in the state since five cases were confirmed in February.
The infected person is an unvaccinated adult from Somerset County, the CDC said.
Anyone who was at MaineGeneral Express Care, at 211 Main St. in Waterville, on Sept. 12 from 8 a.m. to 11 a.m. may have been exposed and should watch for symptoms for 21 days after that date, the CDC said.
Symptoms include:
Fever
Cough
Runny nose
Red, watery eyes
Rash that spreads from the head down.
Measles is a viral disease that is so highly contagious that if one person becomes infected 90% of people around them who are not immune to the virus also will become infected, according to the CDC.
It can cause severe sickness including pneumonia, encephalitis (brain swelling) and death.
Anyone who develops symptoms should contact their health care provider before going to the provider’s office or a hospital to avoid infecting others.
For More Information, see the Maine CDC’s measles webpage, U.S. CDC’s measles webpage, or the Maine Immunization Program webpage.
Prior to this year, Maine had not confirmed a measles case since 2019.
As of Sept. 11, there were 3,294 confirmed measles cases reported nationwide this year. 97% of people who were infected were not vaccinated, according to the U.S. CDC.
South Carolina and Texas currently have the largest outbreaks, followed by Utah, Pennsylvania, Arizona and Wisconsin.
