Measles cases reported in the U.S. are at highest level since 1996

Via NJ Star Ledger :

" Measles cases so far this year are at their highest level since 1996, prompting federal health authorities to urge that children be vaccinated earlier.

Of the 118 cases reported through Friday in the U.S., 105 were associated with importation from other countries, the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said in a report issued Tuesday. The greatest numbers came from Europe and Southeast Asia.

Though 40 percent of the American cases have required hospitalization, none resulted in encephalitis or death.

Since the disease was declared "eliminated" in the United States in 2000, there have been a median of 56 annual cases here, mostly imported and spread by travelers, according to the CDC. The largest national number of reported cases in the last decade was 140."