Migrants not responsible for Chicago measles, city says

52 Chicago measles cases are confirmed
31 cases involve children under 5
5,000 new arrivals have been vaccinated this month

Updated: Mar 29, 2024 / 04:16 PM CDT

FILE- Vials of measles, mumps and rubella vaccine sit in a cooler at the Rockland County Health Department in Pomona, N.Y., March 27, 2019. A midwife on New York’s Long Island, who gave nearly 1,500 children homeopathic pellets instead of required vaccinations, has been fined $300,000, the state’s health department announced this week. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig, File)

(NewsNation) — Two days after Florida GOP Gov. Ron DeSantis linked Chicago’s measles outbreak to the number of migrants being housed in 23 shelters, city health officials announced there are now 52 confirmed cases.

The majority of cases are linked to Chicago’s largest migrant shelter, where more than 1,800 new arrivals are being held, the Chicago Department of Public Health announced. Of the 52 confirmed cases, 31 involve children under the age of 5. As of Wednesday, the city had reported 35 cases.

This week, DeSantis pointed to “illegal aliens” for the large number of Chicago cases. He said he didn’t notice the media “carping” about the city outbreak the way he felt like reporters pointed out the number of those affected in Florida, where 14 cases had been reported as of this week.

But on Friday, Chicago Health Commissioner Olusimbo Ige pushed back against the Florida governor’s assertion about the sources of the city’s measles cases.

“New arrivals didn’t bring measles to Chicago. It was circulating here, and they are vulnerable to it because many come from countries where they didn’t receive the vaccinations we in the United States do, and they’re living in congregate settings where it can spread more easily,” Ige said. “We’re now doing the hard work to contain that spread.”

Chicago remains the national leader in measles cases with more than 50% of the U.S. cases, The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced 97 confirmed cases on Friday. There were 58 measles cases in all of 2023.

This year’s cases have been reported in 18 jurisdictions, including the District of Columbia, the CDC reported. Seven states have reported outbreaks, whic is defined as three or more cases and the agency said that 72% of the national cases are linked to outbreaks.

By comparison, four outbreaks were reported in 2023 and 48 cases were outbreak-related.

Three cases have also been linked to suburban counties in Illinois, bringing the state’s caseload to 55.

Chicago health officials said Friday that more than 5,000 migrants and asylum-seekers have been vaccinated since the first measles case was announced earlier this month. City officials announced earlier this month that vaccinations would be required for any new arrivals living in city-run shelters.

City health department officials said that 95% of migrants living at the shelter in Chicago’s Pilsen neighborhood had either been vaccinated by the city or were immune because they had previously received a shot or had been exposed to the virus.

Ige said that other shelters would be prioritized to reach the 95% vaccination threshold as officials continue to work to limit the spread of measles.

“These are the core pillars of the public health response that are preventing many more cases of measles that would have occurred without these measures,” the city’s health commissioner said. “But all Chicagoans can do their part. There are thousands of people in Chicago, especially children, that are not up to date with the MMR vaccine. We encourage everyone to ensure their children are vaccinated, especially so if they are traveling, and also ensure that children are vaccinated when returning to school after spring break.”