PILSEN — Young children at Pilsen’s migrant shelter must now stay out of childcare and school until 21 days after they are fully vaccinated against measles as cases continue to spread in Chicago.
The city has rolled out new guidelines for people living at the shelter, 2241 S. Halsted St., saying everyone there should receive a second dose of the measles-mumps-rubella vaccine 28 days after getting their first shot if they were not previously vaccinated, according to a Monday health department news release.
Families should also keep children ages 1-5 home from childcare and preschool until 21 days after they get their second dose, or until 21 days after their last exposure to measles if the child can’t get a vaccine.
This will affect about 50 children, according to the health department.
As of Tuesday, there are 31 confirmed measles cases in the city, and 21 of the cases are in children younger than 5 years old, according to city data. A majority of cases have been found in the Pilsen migrant shelter, public health officials said.
The new policies are in light of increasing measles cases in young kids who recently received their first dose, “which isn’t surprising,” Dr. Olusimbo Ige, commissioner of the Department of Public Health, said in a statement.
“While the [measles-mumps-rubella] vaccine is the best protection against the virus, children are at highest risk for contracting breakthrough measles after receiving one dose of the vaccine, especially those less than 5 years old,” Ige said.
Over the past several weeks, all eligible children and adults at the shelter have received at least one dose of the vaccine if they hadn’t already been immunized.
The first case of measles in Chicago since 2019 was found earlier this month in a Chicago resident who isn’t a migrant. Shortly after, a measles case was found in a young child staying at the Pilsen shelter.
City officials relocated already immunized residents of the Pilsen shelter to hotels and other shelters to create quarantine space, the health department previously said. Health teams then moved onto other shelters across the city to provide the measles vaccine to people who haven’t had it yet.
Newly vaccinated migrants are instructed to remain at the Pilsen shelter for 21 days from the date of their second vaccination shot, which is when the vaccine offers full immunity, city officials previously said.
The city also recently rolled out a vaccine requirement for all shelter residents. People arriving at the landing zone must show proof they’ve received the measles-mumps-rubella vaccine to be placed in a shelter. If they can’t, or if they refuse to be vaccinated if they aren’t already, they will not be given a place in a shelter.
What To Know About Measles
Measles is rare in Chicago because there is a high vaccination rate in the city, but reports of cases have increased in the United States, according to the city health department.
The measles-mumps-rubella vaccine, known as the MMR vaccine, is “extremely effective” at preventing the illness and providing protection to people, according to the health department. The measles vaccine is widely available to people 1 and older.
Measles is highly contagious and can be dangerous for unvaccinated people, particularly babies and young children, according to the health department.
Symptoms of measles include rash, high fever, cough, runny nose and red, watery eyes, according to the health department. It can take seven to 21 days for symptoms to appear after a person was exposed.
Anyone who has symptoms of measles should call their doctor or an emergency department before going there in person so the staff can make arrangements to protect other people.
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