Baby Is First Measles Patient In GA This Year, Officials Say

ATLANTA, GA — The first person to contract measles this year in Georgia is a baby, state officials said Monday.

The child is "too young to receive routine measles vaccination" and contracted the virus while traveling internationally, the Georgia Department of Public Health said.

The baby lives in the department's Coastal Health District, which includes Bryan, Camden, Chatham, Effingham, Glynn, Liberty, Long and McIntosh counties.

Officials say they are working to identify people who may have been in contact with the child and as a result have been exposed to the highly infectious disease.

The baby's diagnosis comes after there were 10 confirmed measles cases in 2025 in Georgia, according to state health officials.

The measles virus can spread through the air when an infected person coughs or sneezes and can linger in the air for up to two hours after the infected person has left the room, the DPH said.

Early symptoms of measles are a fever of more than 101 degrees, runny nose, cough, and red, watery eyes. Usually, one to four days after the early symptoms, a red rash appears on the face and spreads to the rest of the body.

Symptoms appear 7 to 14 days after a person has developed the measles, but can develop as soon as seven days and as long as 21 days after exposure, health officials said. A person with measles is contagious, beginning four days before the rash appears, until four days after the rash begins.

People are generally considered immune to measles if they have had two measles vaccine shots, previously had measles or laboratory evidence of immunity or infection, or were born in the United States before 1957, the DPH said in the past.

Those who are most at risk of complications from measles infection are pregnant women, infants less than one year old, and those who are immune compromised.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention advises that children receive their first dose of the measles, mumps, rubella vaccine between 12 and 15 months old and a second dose between 4 and 6 years old.

Children who are aged 6-11 months and are traveling internationally can receive a single dose of the MMR vaccine before they travel, and then receive two more doses after their first birthday, per CDC recommendations and the DPH.

"The vaccine is safe and effective, and parents with questions about the vaccine or the vaccination schedule can consult their physician," public health officials said in a news release.

The DPH said at least 95 percent of the people who receive a single dose of MMR will have immunity to all three viruses. A second dose helps to enhance immunity to 98 percent, the DPH said.

Anyone who has symptoms of the measles should call their health care provider, the DPH said.

People, especially those not vaccinated or otherwise immune to measles, should monitor themselves for any early symptoms of measles for 21 days after the potential exposure, public health officials said in the past.