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posted by martyb on Friday January 18 2019, @07:52PM   Printer-friendly
from the how-many-more-will-suffer dept.

Anti-vaccine nonsense spurred NY's largest outbreak in decades

Health officials in New York are cautiously optimistic that they have a large measles outbreak under control after tackling the noxious anti-vaccine myths and unfounded fears that fueled the disease's spread.

Since last fall, New York has tallied 177 confirmed cases of measles, the largest outbreak the state has seen in decades. It began with infected travelers, arriving from parts of Israel and Europe where the highly contagious disease was spreading. In New York, that spread has largely been confined to ultra-Orthodox Jewish communities. As measles rippled through those insular religious communities, health officials ran into members who were wary of outsiders as well as those who harbor harmful myths and fears about vaccines. This included the completely false-yet-pernicious belief that the measles vaccine causes autism.

To quash the outbreak, health officials met with rabbis and pediatricians in the community, who in turned urged community members to be vigilant and, above all, get vaccinated, according to The New York Times. "Good people, great parents were terrified," Rabbi Yakov Horowitz, founder of Darchei Noam yeshiva in Monsey in Rockland County, told the Times. Despite the fears, he insisted parents vaccinate their children. "They felt that I was asking to give their children something that would harm them."


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  • (Score: 3, Interesting) by deimtee on Saturday January 19 2019, @05:47AM

    by deimtee (3272) on Saturday January 19 2019, @05:47AM (#788570) Journal

    I hate his kids too*, but I still modded him informative. The problems across the board are that 'scientists' have sold out. Vaccines, GMO's, global warming, toxic chemical levels, nuclear power, all have bullshit science on both sides. You can't blame some pleb for picking whatever side he prefers just because those fucks can't get their house in order and do science instead of money-motivated politics. There is plenty of evidence for whatever outcome you prefer, and no way for most people to tell what is real and what is bullshit.

    *Not really.

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    If you cough while drinking cheap red wine it really cleans out your sinuses.
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