Low vaccine uptake increases risk of measles outbreak in schools

Mar. 3—HARROD — Allen East Superintendent Mel Rentschler looks at the measles outbreak in Florida and worries that he may have to send at least 100 students home from school if a similar outbreak were to occur at his school.

"My job is to prepare for worst-case scenarios," Rentschler said.

Of the 1,200 students who attend Allen East, Rentschler estimates anywhere from 8% to 10% per grade have not received their measles, mumps and rubella vaccine.

Ohio Department of Health records show roughly 30% of children who enrolled in kindergarten at Allen East last school year opted out of or did not provide paperwork for the MMR vaccine.

Those students could be sent home to quarantine for 21 days if a measles case is ever detected in the school under Ohio Department of Health guidance.

Children who finished their MMR vaccine would not be subject to quarantine, while students who did not have prior immunity or an MMR vaccine before exposure may leave quarantine early if a measles shot is given within 72 hours of exposure.

"You can choose not to get your kids vaccinated, that's up to you," Rentschler said, "but the consequence is if something like this were to break out in the school, your kid's going to have to go home."

The number of parents forgoing routine vaccinations for their children has steadily grown since the coronavirus pandemic.

State law requires children to receive polio, hepatitis B, chickenpox, diphtheria, tetanus, whooping cough and MMR vaccines before starting kindergarten, but only 85% of Allen County children entering kindergarten for the 2022-23 school year finished their required vaccines, Ohio Department of Health data shows.

Most kindergarten students in Allen County who did not complete their vaccines last school year had incomplete immunization records (8.6%), while 6% claimed conscience or religious objections, and 0.1% opted out due to medical contraindications, records show.

Uptake of the MMR vaccine varies, as records show that some parents who apply for exemptions from other vaccines are still choosing to vaccinate their children against measles, mumps and rubella.

Ohio reported its first measles case of 2024 in Montgomery County in February, while a single measles case was reported in the state last year.

The state's most recent measles outbreak occurred two years ago in Central Ohio, with 85 measles cases confirmed in the Columbus area and five others elsewhere in the state.

The measles virus is highly contagious.

The Ohio Department of Health estimates as many as 90% of people who are exposed to an infected person become infected if they have no prior immunity to the virus, which can linger in the air for up to two hours after a person coughs or sneezes.

The agency warns that as many as one in 20 children who contract measles develop pneumonia, which is the most common cause of death from measles in young children.

While measles is rare, Allen County Health Commissioner Brandon Fischer said the virus is only rare "because we have these vaccines that are exceptionally effective at preventing disease."

"This is one of those (viruses) that's really contagious," Fischer said, noting that infants and children who are too young to be vaccinated are at greatest risk of serious illness when exposed to measles.

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