Despite national measles outbreak, Mississippi looks to be in good shape

WEST POINT, Miss. (WCBI)- Ten states across the nation have confirmed cases of the measles.

And with Georgia joining that list, Mississippi doctors are going on alert.

“We are always on the lookout because a lot of these illnesses can be spread via the respiratory pathways someone that’s got it goes to Walmart and sneezes and infects everyone that comes into contact with. We’re always on the lookout for it especially if it’s in a neighboring state,” said Dr. Keith Watson.

The spread of the viral disease, according to the CDC, comes down to traveling abroad and more people choosing not to vaccinate their kids.

But Dr. Watson said overall Mississippi is in pretty good shape.

“If I remember from the last statistics we have the highest children in the country of all 50 states upwards of 97 percent of kids in the state are vaccinated,” said Dr. Watson.

The difference for Mississippi comes down to our education system.

“The state of Mississippi is one of three states in the United States that do not allow you to not vaccinate. They all require school vaccines unless there is a medical reason if a child is allergic to one of the vaccines and you can’t get it that is an exemption, but the other 47 states allow exceptions based on either a religious belief or the parent not wanting to,” said Dr. Watson.

Choosing not to vaccinate often comes down to one reason.

“The problem is the fear is based usually on poor information you know Dr. Google scares parents, and when you read things on the Internet that say types of things, so they get worried, but the problem is that the information you get on the Internet is not medically factual and it leads to concerns that you shouldn’t have,” said Dr. Watson.

Dr. Watson says if you have any concerns about a vaccine talk to your pediatrician. They will be able to explain the vaccine, side effects, and what isn’t a side effect.