53 cases of measles confirmed in SW Washington

VANCOUVER, Wash. (AP) – Health officials in southwest Washington state say they have confirmed 53 cases of measles.

The Columbian reports Clark County Public Health officials have identified one new case since last week, and one previously confirmed case was ruled out from additional testing.

Officials say 47 of the 53 confirmed cases are people who were not immunized against the highly contagious virus.

Immunization statuses could not be verified for five of the cases. One case involved a child who had received a single dose of the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine.

Fifty-one cases are of children, ages 18 and younger. The remaining two are adults.

In addition to the 53 cases, one has been confirmed in the Seattle area and four are in Portland, just south of Clark County.