Health Department Advises Measles Vaccinations After 11 Cases Surface In Brooklyn

July 2, 2009 6:18 p.m. EST

New York, NY (AHN) - New York City has 11 new cases of measles and the city's Health Department is urging doctors to be on the lookout for new cases and to make sure that children are vaccinated.

The 11 new cases were found in Brooklyn over the past two months and identified by Health Department officials, the department said in a statement Thursday.

Health Department officials added that although measles are not common in New York City that the viral disease is highly contagious and that nearly all cases have been found in unvaccinated children.

"Children should be vaccinated against measles at one year of age," Dr. Jane R. Zucker, the Health Department's assistant commissioner for immunization, said in a statement. "Vaccinating eligible children will protect them and help protect infants who are too young to be vaccinated, by reducing their risk of exposure. Delaying a child's vaccination increases the risk of contracting measles and infecting others."

Vaccination against measles is required for admission into daycare, public school and college in New York.