MDH: Measles outbreak in unvaccinated children in Minnesota following international travel

The Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) said Monday that the state has a measles outbreak.

The department said it has identified 12 cases of international travel-related measles in unvaccinated children since June.

Minnesota right now has half of all measles cases in the United States.

MDH is advising parents to watch for symptoms of measles in their child, especially if returning from international travel.

During the pandemic, MDH says that vaccination rates for children getting the measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine declined and have still not returned to pre-pandemic levels.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention advises, if traveling internationally, that children ages 1 and older be fully vaccinated for measles, and infants 6 to 11 months old get one dose of the vaccine.