POCATELLO, Idaho (KIFI)– Providers from Southeastern Idaho Public Health (SIPH) are urging Idahoans to get their measles immunizations following a rise in disease cases in the Gem State.
On August 20, the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare reported the third confirmed case of measles in Idaho in an unvaccinated child in Bonner County. Previous cases were discovered in Kootenai County and Eastern Idaho.
“This is probably the tip of the iceberg, and there’s other community spread of measles happening in the state of Idaho,” said Ian Troesoyer, nurse practitioner at Southeastern Idaho Public Health. “That is concerning because measles is a pretty significant illness. It’s maybe not quite as deadly as Ebola or anything like that; the risk from measles comes from how contagious it is–it’s just very contagious.”
Troesoyer said as well as being extremely contagious, the measles virus can cause rash, body aches, fever, and, in severe cases, swelling of the brain and a weakened immune system which can leave the body open to other diseases like pneumonia.
Health care providers are also battling record-low measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) immunization numbers across the state, which leaves Idaho susceptible to disease outbreaks. Currently, Idaho has the lowest MMR vaccination rate in the US.
“A lot of that is due to vaccine misinformation,” said Troesoyer. “All medicines, all vaccines, everything in the world has some risk, right?… The risk for getting vaccinated is way lower than the risk of just roughing it out with the actual illness.”
For more information on the measles immunizations, or for questions about vaccines or vaccine records, you can visit the Southeastern Idaho Public Health website or call them at (208) 233-9080.
