First case of measles reported in Cattaraugus County Amish community in 36 years

By RICK MILLER

Olean Star

Cattaraugus County has reported its first case of measles in more than 36 years — an unvaccinated individual in the northwestern part of the county.

Public Health Director Dr. Kevin D. Watkins said the person is a member of the county’s Amish community and likely contracted the disease from one of the six measles cases reported in Chautauqua County’s Amish members.

It was the beginning of August when the Allegany County Health Department reported its first case of measles among the Amish in the town of New Hudson. There are now six measles cases in that county — all among unvaccinated.

Many Amish sects like the Old Order Amish in the western part of Cattaraugus County generally shun vaccines. It stems from the sect’s faith in God, a greater reliance on natural remedies and concerns over vaccines.

Watkins told members of the Cattaraugus County Board of Health Wednesday that in January 1990, the health department reported 56 cases of measles among the Amish in the western part of the county. By the time the epidemic was over, 197 members of the Amish community in the county had contracted the disease. There were also 167 cases of pertussis, or whooping cough among the Amish.

Watkins said news of the first measles case in Allegany County in July spread quickly among this county’s Amish communities.

Soon afterward, the health department began receiving calls from Amish families who wanted to know about getting their children vaccinated, Watkins said. “We are going out and vaccinating.”

Symptoms before the measles rash develops include a high fever, cough, runny nose and red, watery eyes. A person can be contagious for up to three days before the rash appears and up to 10 days afterward.

Watkins said Cattaraugus County has some work to do to get its vaccination rate up from 73.9%, the lowest in Western New York. That is the percentage of two-year-olds who have had at least one dose of the MMR (measles, mumps and rubella) vaccine. The state average MMR vaccination rate is 97.7%, which is above the 95% rate for herd immunity.

This year has been a particularly bad year for measles in the U.S. There have been more cases of measles in the first eight months — more than 2,900 — than were reported in all of last year, just under 2,300.

One dose, Watkins said, is 99% effective, while the second dose boosts that effectiveness to 97%. 

“Measles is one of the most contagious diseases,” he said. It can become airborne when an infected person coughs or sneezes and can remain contagious for about an hour.

“They did a pretty good job in 1990,” Watkins said of the health department’s efforts to contain the measles outbreak in the Amish community.

Watkins said the health department mobilized its vaccination team soon after the first positive case was reported in Allegany County, which has now vaccinate more than 100 individuals. 

Watkins said the Cattaraugus County Health Department is also working closely with a nurse practitioner who runs a clinic in Conewango, home to a large number of Amish families.

The Amish communities in Cattaraugus and Allegany counties often gather together for weddings, funerals, auctions or barn-raisings. The same occurs between the Amish communities in Cattaraugus and Chautauqua counties.

Health department nurses are trying to vaccinate as many Amish children as they can and stay ahead of the disease. It can take up to 10 days for the vaccine’s effectiveness to kick in, Watkins said. For those who have contracted measles and show the face and body rash, a measles globulin can be administered to limit complications from the disease which include Pneumonia, encephalitis, or inflammation of the brain, and ear infections, which can lead to hearing loss. It is administered within six days of the onset of symptoms, but the health department does not stock it.

Watkins also reported on the effectiveness of last year’s influenza vaccines. For those over 18, the vaccines were 22% to 34% effective in keeping people from requiring a doctor or urgent care visit and keeping people out of the hospital, respectively. Those over age 55 are recommended to receive a high-dose flu vaccine, which is more effective.

Cattaraugus County will begin its annual influenza vaccine clinics on Sept. 28 in Limestone.

Asked why the vaccine isn’t more effective than 24%, Watkins said vaccine makers have to decide which influenza is most likely to be the dominant stain during the upcoming flu season here. “It’s hit and miss,” he rep[lied. Last year’s vaccine was 56% effective. This year’s vaccine will be based on strains from Miussouri, Darwin and Tokyo.