Here's Everything You Need To Know About The El Paso Measles Case

For months there has been a measles outbreak going on throughout the nation, and yesterday public health officials confirmed two cases in El Paso.

According to the El Paso Public Health Department a woman in her late 40’s and a toddler were tested for measles and discovered to have the highly-contagious respiratory disease. Because measles is caused by a virus it can be easily spread through coughing and sneezing. It is preventable with a measles vaccine and you can help keep the spread down by always covering your cough and sneezes.

The problem is that because of how contagious the measles is, if you are carrying the illness, 90 percent of the people who are around you who have no immunity from the measles could become infected. Unfortunately, that means that someone in the early stages of the measles might not know they have it and could expose large numbers of people to the disease without really knowing it.

The symptoms of the measles begin with fever, cough, runny nose, and red eyes. A rash that spreads from the head down to the hands and feet usually follows those symptoms. You can see in the photo above what the measles rash looks like.

If you have any questions about the confirmed measles cases or are wondering if you might have been exposed, you can call the Health Department at 915-212-0200, or click here for their website.

City officials released a list of places that they say you might have been exposed to the measles:

Thursday, 6/27/19 Neighborhood Walmart (10301 Alameda) 1:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.

Friday, 6/28/19 Subway at Ft. Bliss (1333 Cassidy) 5:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m.

Saturday, 6/29/19 Bassett Place Mall-Target, Kohl’s, Jewelry Box 6:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.

Sunday, 6/30/19 Ft. Bliss PX, Exchange, Food Court Noon - 4:30 p.m.

Monday, 7/1/19 Walmart at Americas (9441 Alameda) 4:00 a.m. - 6:00 a.m.