Five Disneyland employees have been diagnosed with measles after the theme park became ground zero for a new outbreak first identified in December.
According to The Associated Press, Disneyland has offered all park employees immunity tests and vaccinations, and employees who came in contact with the infected were put on paid leave until their immunity could be verified.
"It is at large in the community now, and particularly infants too young to be immunized, people with other health conditions and, of course, people who aren't immunized need to be very concerned," said Orange County health agency spokeswoman Deanne Thompson.
Epidemiologists say that the measles was all but obliterated in the U.S. by the year 2000, but attractions like Disneyland that draw visitors from around the world continue to see the occasional case.
The latest outbreak could be larger than the U.S. has seen in over a decade, and has already spread beyond California. Four other states have confirmed cases of measles, with Oregon becoming the latest addition to the list after a Eugene man tested positive following a visit to the theme park.
Contributing to the spread of the disease are the children of parents who've signed a personal belief waiver to have them exempted from mandatory vaccinations required by schools.
Many parents fear that the vaccination will give their child autism, however numerous mainstream, peer-reviewed studies have dismissed any autism link.
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