The Georgia Department of Health has issued new guidelines for the prevention of measles among international travelers and people living in or visiting an area in the US that’s experiencing a measles outbreak. If you’re planning on traveling outside of the US and have children from 6 months to 3 years of age, your child probably needs a dose of MMR before you go. The text below is directly from the GDPH:
As of May 31, the number of measles cases reported in the United States hit 981 — the highest number in any year since the disease was eliminated in the country in 2000, the CDC said. Worldwide, the number of cases in the first three months of 2019 were triple the amount recorded in the first three months of 2018, according to the World Health Organization. The Georgia Department of Public Health has these recommendations for administering measles containing vaccination for infants (6 to 11 months), based on travel type.
1. International Travel for people 6 months of age and older traveling internationally:
- Infants 6 – 11 months of age should receive one dose of MMR vaccine.
- Children 12 months of age and older should receive two doses of MMR vaccine separated by at least 28 days.
- Teenagers and adults who do not have evidence of immunity against measles should receive two doses of MMR vaccine separated by at least 28 days.
2. Domestic Travel for infants 6 – 11 months of age, traveling to a state experiencing a measles outbreak*, should receive one dose of MMR vaccine if:
- The local public health authority for the travel destination has made a recommendation to vaccinate infant residents; OR
- The visiting infant will have direct contact with the affected community and may be at risk of being exposed.
In either of the above situations where vaccination of the infant is recommended, ACIP recommends two more doses be given according to the routine schedule: one dose at 12 – 15 months and another dose at 4-6 years of age, or at least 28 days later.
*An up to date list of domestic jurisdictions monitoring ongoing measles outbreaks may be found by accessing the following link: https://www.cdc.gov/measles/index.html