Florida reported its first case of measles so far this year in a high schooler at Palmetto Senior High School.
The state’s surgeon general, Dr. Joseph Ladapo, sent a letter to parents at the school on Tuesday, notifying them of the case — but the Florida Department of Health official stopping short of advocating typical guidelines for school exposures.
After a measles case is detected at a school, common public health recommendations are that unvaccinated children stay at home for up to 21 days, the period of time someone could get infected and spread the virus further.
Ladapo’s letter to parents noted the recommendations, but referred the decision of whether unvaccinated kids should stay at home to parents, saying, “Due to the high immunity rate in the school, as well as the burden on families and educational cost of healthy children missing school, DOH is deferring to parents or guardians to make decisions about school attendance.”
He also noted that the recommendation may change.
The Miami-Dade School District is prepared to provide remote learning to kids whose parents choose to keep them home, the letter said.
Serving as Florida’s top health official, Ladapo has previously espoused views that contradict standard public health guidance. He has previously come out against the use of mRNA vaccines, as well as fluorinated drinking water — although both practices have been backed by scientific studies.
Ladapo’s letter also said parents should contact their doctor if they notice any measles symptoms, warning them not to visit a doctor’s office without speaking with them ahead of time to reduce the risk of spread.
Measles is a very contagious virus. Up to 90% of unvaccinated people will contract measles if exposed.
The virus can remain in the air for two hours after an infected person has left. Someone can spread measles four days before, through four days after, a symptomatic rash develops.
The new case comes as an outbreak in Texas grew this week to 159 cases, according to the Texas Department of State Health Services. Children and teenagers made up a majority of those cases, totaling 127, the DSHS said Tuesday.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention separately confirmed 164 measles cases in nine other states this year — Alaska, California, Georgia, Kentucky, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York and Rhode Island. The total, however, is an undercount due to delays in reporting from states to the federal government.
Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. referred to the outbreak in Texas as “a call to action for all of us” in an op-ed published by Fox News on Sunday. But he stopped short of recommending the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine.
Instead, he said that the government should “make vaccines readily accessible for all those who want them” and advised parents to talk to their health care providers about pursuing them.
He went on to explain a few days later that he had attended “measles parties” as a child, though he warned people against deliberately sickening themselves.
“You know, I went to measles parties when I was a kid and I went to chickenpox parties, and I had natural immunity,” Kennedy told Fox News’ Marc Siegel in an interview that aired Tuesday night.
“I don’t advise that people go make themselves sick, by the way,” Kennedy cautioned.
ABC News’ Will McDuffie contributed to this report.
