Maine child tests positive for measles – state’s 1st case since 2019

The Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention said Friday that a Maine child has tested positive for measles, the first case in the state since 2019.

The agency said it is waiting for confirmation from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. It has notified several facilities where exposure may have occurred and is working with those facilities to inform potentially exposed individuals.

No further information was provided about the child or the child’s condition.

The child tested positive despite having received a dose of measles vaccine, the CDC said. It is not possible to contract measles from the vaccine. The Maine CDC is considering the child to be infectious out of an abundance of caution.

The MMR vaccine (measles, mumps, rubella) is a two-dose regimen, with the first dose given at 12-15 months of age, and the second dose given to children between ages 4-6. It is possible to contract measles even though vaccinated, although it is rare. The U.S. CDC reports that one dose of the vaccine provides 93% protection, while two doses confers 97% protection.

Fully vaccinated people who do contract measles tend to get milder cases and are less likely to transmit the disease, according to the U.S. CDC.

People who were at the following locations during the times listed below were potentially exposed to measles and are being advised by the Maine CDC to take precautions:

• Family Time Dine and Play at Auburn Mall in Auburn, April 29, 3-7 p.m.

• Clear Choice MD in Scarborough (273 Payne Road), May 1, 1-4 p.m.

• Hannaford on Cottage Road in South Portland (Mill Creek Hannaford), May 1, 2-5 p.m.

• Mercy Fore River Emergency Department, May 2, 7:45 p.m. to midnight

• Mercy Fore River Emergency Department, May 3, midnight to 3:30 a.m.

Anyone at these locations during these times should watch for symptoms for 21 days after their exposure, the CDC said. People who develop symptoms should call a health care provider for instructions before going to the office or hospital to help prevent further spread of infection. There are no asymptomatic cases of measles.

Most people are vaccinated for measles as a child, but people who are or may be unvaccinated should speak with a health care provider, the CDC said.

From Jan. 1 through April 28, there were 10 cases of measles confirmed in eight states, according to the U.S. CDC. The last major measles outbreak, in 2019, occurred in 31 states, with 1,274 cases, including one in Maine. The outbreak was driven by unvaccinated people, the U.S. CDC said.

Maine also had a case in 2017, and the previous case before that occurred in 1997.

Measles is a highly contagious viral disease that causes flu-like symptoms and a rash that spreads from the head down. It can cause pneumonia, encephalitis (brain swelling) and death.

The virus is spread through coughs or sneezes and the infected person can spread the disease four days before a rash appears until four afterward. The virus can survive for two hours on surfaces and in the air.

The MMR vaccine is the best prevention for measles, the CDC says.

Maine eliminated religious and philosophic exemptions to school-required vaccines, including the MMR vaccine, in a 2019 law that went into effect in 2021. A 2020 referendum that attempted to repeal the law failed at the polls, with Maine people supporting mandatory vaccination for school attendance by a 73% to 27% margin.

Maine’s statewide opt-out rates plummeted from a high of about 6% of students entering kindergarten in 2019-20 – including non-medical and medical exemptions – to 1.8% for the 2021-22 school year, when the law was implemented. Exemptions are still allowed for medical reasons.

Attempts to repeal the law surfaced again during the current legislative session, with anti-vaccine advocates advancing debunked conspiracy theories about vaccines during a public hearing in April. With Democrats in control of the Legislature, and Gov. Janet Mills in favor of the law, it is expected to survive attempts to overturn it.