Measles is back in the United States, WHO authorities say

Measles is officially back in the United States after the disease had been eliminated from the country for more than 25 years.

The U.S. officially eliminated measles in 2000, meaning that at that time, the country had gone over a year without continuous domestic spread of the disease. Travelers would occasionally bring measles into the country, sometimes sparking significant local outbreaks, but these didn't tip enough dominoes to lead to ongoing domestic transmission.

That status has now changed, the Wall Street Journal reported Friday (Nov. 13). The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), which is the regional office of the World Health Organization for the Americas, has reevaluated the United States' measles elimination status and determined that it should be revoked. With this decision, the U.S. joins several other nations that have seen a local return of measles, including Read Entire Article