The Georgia Department of Public Health recently confirmed three new measles cases in Georgia. This brings the total confirmed cases to 10 for 2025.
The cases are close contacts of the confirmed measles case on September 11 that began on the Georgia State University campus.
Two of the three people who contracted the disease are unvaccinated, and the third has an unknown vaccination status.
Dr. Melinda Brindley, an Associate Professor in the Departments of Infectious Diseases and Population Health, says Athenians shouldn’t worry about contracting measles if they’ve had their two measles, mumps, and rubella vaccines.
“And so as long as you've had those two vaccines, and you don't have any obvious immunocompromising situations later in life… you should be protected. If you have not gotten those vaccines, you should get them, or, you know, wear a good N95 mask,” she said.
Brindley sees the increase in measles cases over the years as a preventable situation, "It's really sad having such a good vaccine has caused the ability of people to forget how dangerous this virus really is.”
Early symptoms of measles include fever, cough, runny nose and pink eye. Then, the distinctive pink spotted rash will start at the hairline and crawl down the face and body.
According to the National Institutes of Health, parents refusing vaccines typically fall into four categories. These reasons vary widely between parents, but they can be encompassed in four overarching categories.
The four categories are religious reasons, personal beliefs or philosophical reasons, safety concerns, and a desire for more information from healthcare providers. Parental concerns about vaccines in each category lead to a wide spectrum of decisions varying from parents completely refusing all vaccinations to only delaying vaccinations so that they are more spread out.
For more information on measles and updates on the outbreak, visit the Georgia Department of Health website at dph.georgia.gov .
