We have a collective responsibility to ensure our vaccination rates are adequate enough to prevent the spread of measles.
(Desiree Rios | The New York Times) A 50-year-old measles patient in Seminole, Texas, on Feb. 24, 2025.
On Feb. 16, 2021, I sat in the cramped waiting room of a Winn-Dixie supermarket in north-central Florida. As I ran my finger over the Band-Aid on my upper arm, the pharmacist scrawled the date onto my very own COVID vaccination card. I had just begun my medical training at the peak of the coronavirus pandemic, and my exposure to the virus would be inevitable. It was a momentous day — receiving the vaccine would be my best “shot” at avoiding the dreaded infection. I made sure to snap a photo in front of the store in commemoration.
Today, I live more than 2,000 miles away from that Winn-Dixie, and I’ve since received a few more COVID boosters. I have also started to practice pediatric medicine. COVID is still alive and well in our community, though we now have our eye on another deadly foe: measles.
As of April 10, there are no confirmed cases of measles in Utah, but there are whispers that it is only a matter of time before our hospitals house children with the fever and rash that are commonly seen in the disease.
The concern for measles’ inevitable arrival may stem from the fact that the amount of appropriately vaccinated children in Utah has been steadily declining since 2017. Last year, only 87% of Utah kindergarteners received all vaccines recommended by the CDC. The data for kindergarteners attending school online is even more worrisome, with only 46% adequately protected. The Utah Department of Health and Human Services estimates that 11% of Utah kindergartners had not yet received at least 1 dose of the measles (MMR) vaccine.
In 2021, much of the public voiced concern that the COVID vaccine was new, and therefore, unreliable. On the contrary, the MMR vaccine for children was introduced in 1971, and more than 50 years of data tells us that it is both safe and extremely effective at preventing disease – receiving two doses of the vaccine has a median effectiveness of 97%. A 2024 study even estimated that the measles vaccine prevented almost 94 million deaths between June 1974 and May 2024.
This statistic is especially important given measles’ incredible predilection for spreading from person to person. As one of the most infectious pathogens known to humans, one person infected with measles can transmit it to 12 to 18 other susceptible individuals. In other words, in a kindergarten classroom with one sick student, nearly all of the unimmunized children would become infected.
It’s safe to say I was afraid of the havoc the novel coronavirus could wreak on our community when I received my first COVID vaccine in 2021. Today, as a pediatrician, I’m perhaps more concerned about measles’ potential impacts on Utah’s youth. Those who are vulnerable to the disease are at risk of developing devastating respiratory infections, inflammation of the brain tissue and even death.
Opponents of the MMR vaccine might argue that these outcomes are rare, and for healthy children, this is true. However, I would urge these folks to consider the children in our community who are not considered “healthy” at baseline. These include infants born prematurely, children receiving treatment for cancer and any child receiving immunosuppressive medication for a variety of conditions. We have a collective responsibility to ensure our vaccination rates are adequate enough to prevent the spread of measles – a 2019 study estimates that 95% of the community must be adequately vaccinated to achieve this.
I recently met with a 6-month-old patient and his mother in a clinic. He had been born three months early and spent 78 days in the NICU. He had already been diagnosed with inadequate lung development and a small brain bleed. His mother inquired if there was anything we could do to prevent measles, as she had appropriately recognized that her son was at risk for developing dangerous complications from the infection. I shared with her that while the MMR vaccine is usually given at 1 year of age, it is safe to be administered at 6 months of age in the event of travel or during an outbreak. Her relief and excitement were feelings with which I could identify, as I remember experiencing both while sitting in the Winn-Dixie pharmacy four years ago, waiting for my COVID vaccine.
As measles has now reached two of Utah’s neighboring states, educating parents and caregivers on measles prevention is more important than ever for pediatricians. We have the tools necessary to protect our community — let’s give our patients their best “shot” at a healthy, measles-free childhood.
(Ally Fraser) Dr. Ally Fraser is a pediatrician in Salt Lake City.
Dr. Ally Fraser is a pediatrician in Salt Lake City. She has a special interest in general pediatrics, advocacy and medical education.
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