MONTICELLO, NY — According to the New York State Department of Health (DOH), as of June 14, there were eight confirmed cases of measles in Sullivan County, 588 cases in New York City and 343 cases in the state outside of NYC.

Nancy McGraw, the public health director of Sullivan County, addressed members of the county legislature and reviewed steps by the organization to address the measles outbreak. The Public Health Services Department (PHSD) has issued two public health advisories warning residents about when and where exposure to the measles virus may have occurred. The latest advisory indicated that exposure could have taken place on June 1 at Yeshiva Gedolah Zichron Moshe in South Fallsburg or on June 4, 2019 at Middletown Medical in Thompson Square Mall, Monticello.

McGraw said there is behind-the-scenes activity in PHSD with every exposure, including investigations. She said the health advisories alert the public to the possibility of exposures, so people can check their immunization status, “especially in the case of your children who may not be fully immunized.”

McGraw said her department is working closely with local rabbis who are helping with education and outreach. The DOH has provided the state with literature intended to counter some of the anti-vaxxer movement that is spreading misinformation about vaccinations.

State and federal governments, she added, are playing a role in the local response. “We’ve been assigned additional staff by the state health department, and we will have a representative from the Centers for Disease Control coming, who will be assigned to our department to assist us with resources, so that we can efficiently and effectively continue to carry out our investigations,” she said. “If this continues to increase in terms of the number of cases, which I do expect, we’ve set up an incident command, so we’re ready to go.

“At the state level senators and assembly members voted on June 13 to end all religious exemptions on measles vaccinations in the state. According to DOH figures during the 2017-18 school year, 26,217 students in schools and other facilities were exempted from vaccination because of religious objects.

Gov. Cuomo signed the law almost immediately.

“The science is crystal clear: Vaccines are safe, effective and the best way to keep our children safe. This administration has taken aggressive action to contain the measles outbreak, but given its scale, additional steps are needed to end this public health crisis,” Cuomo said. “While I understand and respect freedom of religion, our first job is to protect the public health and by signing this measure into law, we will help prevent further transmissions and stop this outbreak right in its tracks.”

Attorney Michael Sussman, who had been representing a Rockland County man in a lawsuit against the Sullivan County measles order, said that action by the state legislature essentially ends that lawsuit.