Amish volunteers to the PH brought measles to Ohio – report

MANILA, Philippines – Four members of the Amish community in Ohio, USA, who volunteered to help out typhoon victims in the Philippines in March came back to their home state infected with measles.

An Associated Press report published Friday, April 25, and syndicated by different news sites in the US says 16 cases of measles were confirmed at the Knox county in Central Ohio, where the Amish community is located.

“The Department of Health (DOH) [in Knox County] says the outbreak of the highly contagious respiratory disease began with unvaccinated travelers who returned to Ohio after visiting the Philippines,” the report read.

NBC News’ health reporter Jonel Aleccia also reported on Friday that the normally reluctant Amish community members have flocked to makeshift clinics for vaccination shots as a result of the outbreak.

Aleccia said the 4 Amish travellers were part of a humanitarian group convened by Christian Aid Ministries, an Amish-Mennonite organization based in Berlin, Ohio.

“David Leid, a project coordinator, said that the group had planned to send at least two dozen more groups to the Philippines in coming months, but that the measles outbreak may have changed that,” read the NBC report.

Earlier in the year, measles cases went on the upsurge in Metro Manila, with some 21 barangays in 9 cities declaring an outbreak.

The DOH in the Philippines reported that there were 1,724 cases of measles nationwide from January 1 to December 14, 2013, with 43% or 744 cases recorded in Metro Manila alone. – Rappler.com